Uprooted trees, flattened cars as rare summer storm hits Netherlands

Record ID: 1732548

  • Title: Uprooted trees, flattened cars as rare summer storm hits Netherlands
  • Date: 5th July 2023
  • Summary: AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS (JULY 5, 2023) (REUTERS) EMERGENCY WORKERS STANDING NEAR CAR WITH FALLEN TREE ON TOP CAR UNDER FALLEN TREE EMERGENCY WORKERS NEAR CARS WITH FALLEN TREES ON TOP PERSON LOOKING INSIDE CAR WITH FALLEN TREE ON TOP/EMERGENCY WORKERS STANDING NEARBY FALLEN BRANCHES NEAR PETROL STATION FALLEN BRANCHES NEAR SIGN FOR CAR WASH FALLEN TREE/MECHANICAL DIGGER BEHIND TREE PARTS NEAR WATER EMERGENCY WORKERS AND VEHICLE IN ROAD NEAR FALLEN TREES FALLEN BRANCHES NEAR BICYCLE DOCKING STATION FALLEN TREES NEAR BUILDING PEOPLE CYCLING NEAR FALLEN TREE ACROSS PAVEMENT/EMERGENCY WORKER WALKING
  • Embargoed: 19th July 2023 12:06
  • Keywords: Amsterdam weather STORM Storm Poly uprooted trees
  • Location: AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS
  • City: AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS
  • Country: Netherlands
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Europe,Wind/Hurricane/Typhoons/Tornadoes
  • Reuters ID: LVA001482305072023RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: A rare summer storm with winds of up to 145 kilometres (90 miles) per hour hit the Netherlands on Wednesday (July 5), causing at least one death as people across much of the country were told to stay indoors and travel was severely disrupted.
    Video footage from Amsterdam showed trees trapped under fallen trees, and emergency workers clearing debris from roads.
    A 51-year old woman died in Haarlem after a tree fell on the car she was in, local police said.
    In Amsterdam, several people were injured as dozens of trees were toppled by the storm, damaging cars and houseboats along the city's canals.
    The National Meteorology Institute sent its highest code red storm warning to residents of the Noord-Holland province, which includes Amsterdam, urging them not to leave their homes and to note emergency service numbers for life-threatening situations only.
    The storm, named Poly, is the Netherlands' worst ever during the summer months and its strongest overall since January 2018, weather agency Weeronline said.
    Heavy storms in the Netherlands usually occur between October and April. The last heavy summer storm was in 2015 and was the first in over a century.
    The summer storm is causing much damage as trees are heavy with leaves and many of them have become brittle during an unusually long dry spell in May and June.
    Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, one of Europe's busiest hubs, cancelled more than 400 flights, a spokesperson said, with traffic expected to be limited until at least 4 pm local time (1400 GMT).
    Train operators NS and Arriva halted all services in the country's north, and a highway north of Amsterdam was closed due to falling trees.
    The storm will move east over the north of the country and is expected to become less intense during the afternoon.
    ((Production: Anthony Deutsch, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Lynné Schoeman, Jacqueline Clyne)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2023. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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