Two people dead as Latvia, Lithuania battered by severe summer storms

Riga [Latvia], August 24: Two people have been killed and power supplies were partially disrupted in the Baltics after the region was hit by heavy storms and rainfall.
Emergency forces recovered the body of a man from under a fallen tree in the Lithuanian village of Mazionys, while another man was hit and killed by falling building parts in the Latvian city of Jelgava.
Several people have also been hospitalized with injuries.
More than 250,000 households were temporarily left without power in Lithuania, according to the national operator, with a similar number affected in neighbouring Latvia.
The Baltic Sea region was particularly affected by the disruptions caused mainly by trees that had fallen on power lines, according to the operator.
"This is definitely the worst storm we have recorded this summer," a meteorologist from the Lithuanian Meteorological Service told national radio.
In Latvia, the Leta news agency, citing meteorological data, described the storm as "the most destructive storm to hit the country since 2005." The storms, which reached wind speeds of up to 30 metres per second, began battering the region on Saturday, with further rainfall and wind expected on Sunday.
Authorities in both countries had previously issued storm warnings.
Heavy rainfall also caused flooding in several regions, with road traffic, train, flight and shipping services disrupted.
Source: Qatar Tribune