Ten dead in floods in Bulgaria’s Varna – reports
At least 10 people were dead after torrential rains on June 19 2014 flooded the Asparouhovo area of Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Varna, local media said.
Among the dead were said to be people who had been at a bus stop who were hit by a huge wave of water.
The torrent of water that deluged that part of Varna inundated houses and streets, dragging with it cars, washing machines, refrigerators and furniture, according to a report by Nova Televizia.
Local media said that Bulgaria’s interior minister Tsvetlin Yovchev, ministry chief secretary Svetozar Lazarov and the chief of Bulgaria’s fire safety and population protection directorate Nikolai Nikolov were on their way to Varna.
Varna was hit by a torrent of 35 litres a sq m of rain in just a few hours on June 19, against a monthly average for the city in June being 60 litres a sq m.
Further rain was expected to hit the Black Sea city in two successive waves overnight, although the weather was forecast to ease on June 20, the National Institute of Meteorology’s Ivan Ivanov said.
The torrential rain in Varna caused power failures and disrupted public transport, including a public transport trolley bus that was hit by lightning.#
The thunderstorm that descended on Varna at about 6.30pm caused problems in mobile communications, local media said.
There were reports of fallen branches and buildings flooded included a creche, reports said.
Earlier reports said that those who died in the deluge included a young boy who drowned just metres from a police station.
Emergency services rescued several people, some of them suffering from exposure.
Police called on residents to stay on high ground and to avoid going outdoors.
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