Storm's aftermath in Lithuania could be worst in 20 years, PM says

Lithuania is assessing the aftermath of a severe storm that swept across the country on Saturday, with officials warning that its impact could be the most significant in 20 years. Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius held an emergency meeting Sunday morning with relevant authorities to discuss the critical situation and outline immediate actions for damage control.

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The storm claimed a life. I express my sincere condolences to the family of the deceased. There are injured people. According to the services, the number of uprooted trees and emergency calls indicates the largest scale of incidents in the past two decades.

"The storm claimed a life. I express my sincere condolences to the family of the deceased. There are injured people. According to the services, the number of uprooted trees and emergency calls indicates the largest scale of incidents in the past two decades," stated the Prime Minister. The storm also caused widespread power outages, affecting nearly 220,000 consumers by Sunday morning, with almost 3,000 reported faults. The Kaunas region bore the brunt of the damage.

Sinkevičius acknowledged that restoring electricity in some areas might take time. He thanked firefighters, power grid workers, road crews, railway personnel, and all other services that began working even before the storm subsided. "Responsible services must now mobilize all available resources to clear the storm's aftermath as quickly as possible," he urged.

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Responsible services must now mobilize all available resources to clear the storm's aftermath as quickly as possible.

The Prime Minister also advised residents to exercise caution, avoid dangerous areas, follow official recommendations, and report any new hazards caused by the storm to the authorities. Firefighters nationwide responded to over 1,200 calls related to wind damage, including trees falling on cars, buildings, and power infrastructure. The storm's impact on the power grid is described as exceptionally severe, with full restoration potentially taking up to a week.

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Residents are urged to remain cautious, avoid dangerous areas, and follow the recommendations of the services. If new dangers caused by the storm are observed, they must be reported to the responsible institutions.