A powerful Category 4 tropical hurricane, Kirk, weakened to an extratropical storm, struck Western Europe on October 8. Still dangerous, it made landfall between Portugal and northern Spain, bringing strong winds and heavy rains.
In Portugal, coastal winds reached seventy-five miles per hour, and waves rose up to twenty-three feet, leading to a yellow alert. In Porto, the storm knocked down over 400 trees, damaging cars and paralyzing rail transport in the northern part of the country. The storm left more than 300,000 people without electricity.
Hurricane Kirk also brought destructive winds to Spain, affecting the northern and northwestern regions. In the province of Cantabria, gusts reached up to one hundred twenty-seven miles per hour. In the Tres Mares area, the wind tore off the roofs of a supermarket and a hospital. In the Galicia region, fallen branches on power lines left hundreds of residents without electricity. The wind tore off the roof of a conservatory in Santiago de Compostela. Fallen trees, landslides, and floods seriously disrupted traffic on highways and railroads.
Southern and central regions of France were severely impacted by the storm. In the Mediterranean, three boats capsized off the coast of Sète, leading to the death of one amateur sailor, while another was hospitalized in critical condition. In the south of the country, around 65,000 people were left without power due to the storm. In Paris, heavy rains set a new October record with 2.8 inches of rainfall in a single day. The waters of the Grand Morin River, a tributary of the Seine, overflowed, flooding streets and roads. The French parliament building was also damaged by flooding as water poured from the ceilings, requiring evacuation and the intervention of firefighters.
On October 10, the storm moved into Italy, bringing heavy rains and flash floods.
Storms and hurricanes are becoming increasingly intense and abnormal. The threat they pose to property and human life is rapidly growing. We need an effective way to protect against the forces of nature, and technologies that can solve this challenge have already been developed. Learn more about how to protect yourself and your loved ones by watching the documentary "Water from Air: The Path to Saving Humanity."