Over the weekend, Bulgaria and Romania experienced a severe storm that resulted in two fatalities. In Varna, a 43-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree on Saturday night, with two rescuers also injured by broken branches. In Sofia, a 65-year-old driver died when a tree fell on his car, leaving his wife in critical condition. Despite calm weather in the capital on Sunday, eastern Bulgaria continued to experience strong winds over 100 km/h and rough seas with waves over five meters. Varna declared a state of emergency and advised residents to stay at home.

Meanwhile, the northeast of the country was hit by snow chaos with dozens of calls received from drivers in trouble and air and rail traffic being disrupted. The same storm also hit neighboring Romania, closing Black Sea ports to navigation. The meteorological service issued the highest red warning for the provinces of Constanta and Tulcea, leaving tens of thousands of homes without electricity and requiring firefighters to remove 140 fallen trees from roads with about 40 damaged vehicles. This latest incident is just one in a series of weather disasters that Bulgaria has faced recently.