Deadly Toll: Storm Ciaran Ravages Western Europe, 10 Dead

• Storm Ciaran claims 10 lives in Western Europe with record-breaking winds.
• Tuscany, Italy declares a state of emergency due to unprecedented rainfall.
• Fallen trees lead to fatalities, including in Belgium and France.

Storm Ciaran unleashed its fury on Western Europe, claiming the lives of at least 10 individuals with its record-breaking winds reaching speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour.

The storm wreaked havoc across the region, resulting in closed ports and significant disruptions to air and rail travel.

Italian authorities in Tuscany reported three casualties on Friday, where the storm brought unprecedented levels of rainfall and prompted the declaration of a state of emergency.

Among the victims was an 85-year-old man, tragically found drowned in his own home, as Tuscany governor Eugenio Giani revealed.

“What happened tonight in Tuscany has a name: climate change,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Florence mayor Dario Nardella said the “situation is critical” in the city.

Gale-force winds, resulting in fallen trees, were responsible for most of the fatalities in Europe due to Storm Ciaran. Tragic incidents occurred in various locations, including Ghent, Belgium, where a Ukrainian boy

and a woman lost their lives to falling branches.

In northern France’s Aisne region, a lorry driver was killed when a tree fell on his vehicle, while in Le Havre, a man tragically fell from his balcony.

Additional casualties were reported in the Dutch town of Venray, central Madrid, and Germany. The storm’s impact left approximately 1.2 million homes in France without electricity, and nearly 700,000 remained in the dark. French President Emmanuel Macron was scheduled to visit the storm-affected region of Brittany.

Belgium experienced disruptions in rail, air, and maritime travel, with the port of Antwerp closed and flight operations from Brussels affected.

In western Brittany, wind gusts reached unprecedented levels, with Pointe du Raz recording gusts as high as 207 km/h, and Brest seeing winds of 156 km/h.

In southern England, strong winds of 135 km/h led to the closure of hundreds of schools, and on Jersey, residents had to be evacuated to hotels as gusts reached up to 164 km/h.

Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport had over 200 flight cancellations, and numerous countries faced cancellations and delays in air, rail, and ferry services.

Storm Ciaran’s impact extended as far south as Spain and Portugal, with warnings of exceptionally high waves along the Atlantic coast. Spain had to cancel more than 80 flights at 11 airports.

The Dutch “headwind cycle championships” race, held along the Oosterscheldekering storm surge barrier, had to be postponed due to the storm’s intensity.

The French weather service predicted ongoing storms, particularly in the southwest of the country and on Corsica.

Transport Minister Clement Beaune announced that rail services in western areas would remain disrupted on Friday.

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