Intense hailstorms wreak havoc across Croatia, Slovenia and Montenegro

Powerful thunderstorms swept through the western Balkans, beginning in Slovenia on July 1, 2024, and moving eastward. The storms brought strong winds, large hail and heavy rains, causing widespread destruction across Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, and Montenegro. Two people lost their lives.

A powerful storm swept through the Western Balkans earlier this week, bringing large hail, strong winds, and torrential rain, resulting in widespread damage and two fatalities. The severe weather event began in Slovenia on Monday and moved eastward, impacting Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, and Montenegro.

On July 1, in Zagreb, Croatia’s capital, hailstones “the size of tennis balls” pummeled the city during a dangerous thunderstorm. Red warnings were issued in Zagreb and Osijek, indicating a “possible danger to life.” The storm caused severe damage to buildings, with roofs destroyed by hail.

Footage revealed the extent of the destruction, including damaged homes and travel disruptions. Trams in Zagreb were halted due to fallen trees on power lines and roads, and flights from Zagreb airport to Dubrovnik and Stockholm were canceled, according to flight-tracking tool Radarbox. Local media reported 30 emergency calls related to damaged homes.

In Bošnjaci, Croatia, the worst affected ara, giant hailstones damaged roofs, facades, cars, and greenhouses, and destroyed crops. Firefighters responded to numerous calls, with 76 incidents requiring intervention from 296 firefighters and 120 vehicles. The storm affected Zagreb County, the City of Zagreb, Varaždin County, and Vukovar-Srijem County, causing tree falls and roof damage.

Severe weather also led to significant flooding in Dugo Selo, approximately 16 km (10 miles) outside of Zagreb. Orange thunderstorm warnings remain in place for Dubrovnik, a popular tourist destination, while yellow thunderstorm warnings were issued along Croatia’s Adriatic coastline and parts of Slovenia.

Agricultural damage is also high, and many farmers are saying they still haven’t received help for severe damage sustained during the extreme storm that hit Croatia in July 2023.

In Slovenia, emergency teams responded to dozens of calls as egg-sized hail and winds destroyed windshields, power lines, homes, gardens, and farms. Over 1 000 firefighters joined emergency teams in Croatia, and a fire broke out when lightning struck a house in the village of Bošnjaci.

In Montenegro, a worker died at a construction site in Canj, and another person was killed by a lightning strike in Lustica. The storm toppled construction cranes in Bar Harbor, wrecked beaches, uprooted trees, and inundated streets.

The storm also left several villages in northwestern Bosnia without electricity, and cars and homes were damaged throughout the country.

Croatian public broadcaster HRT reported that weather conditions are expected to improve starting July 3, with summer temperatures and sunny, dry spells forecasted across most of the country.

References:

¹ Croatia’s climate calamity, severe storms leave trail of destruction – EN – July 2, 2024

² Two dead after powerful storm sweeps through Western Balkans – EN – July 2, 2024

³ A powerful summer storm sweeps through Balkans with hail, rain and winds, killing 2 – AP – July 2, 2024

⁴ Croatia’s tourist hotspots hit by storms with hail the size of ‘tennis balls’ – Inews – July 2, 2024

⁵ Strong Storm hits Croatia, caused Material Damage – sarajevo – July 1, 2024

Featured image credit: NOVA TV (stillshot)