Nearly two months’ worth of rain in 7 hours causes deadly flash floods in Odesa, Ukraine

At least 9 people, including one child and a family of 5, were reported dead in Odesa, Ukraine, after a severe rainstorm swept through the region on Tuesday, September 30, local authorities reported on October 1.

“A horrific situation in Odesa these days – 9 people have died as a result of the natural disaster, including a child,” said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on October 1.

“Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba reported on the situation in the city and on clarifying the circumstances behind a tragedy of this scale. I instructed him to conduct a full review of operations in Odesa and of all the facts that preceded the tragedy and could have led to such grave consequences,” he added.

A family of five who were trapped in the lower floors of a residential building were later pronounced dead, Maryna Averina, the emergency service’s spokesperson for the Odesa region, told Ukrainian media.

Another three women died as they were walking along a road and were swept away, Averina added.

Rescuers evacuated people from water traps, pulled out vehicles, pumped water from buildings overnight, and searched for a missing girl, who was found early on the morning of October 1.

In total, rescuers saved more than 360 people and evacuated about 227 vehicles overnight.

“In just seven hours, almost two months’ worth of rain fell in Odesa,” said Mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov. “No stormwater drainage system can withstand such a load.”

Based on Odesa’s climatological averages, two months of rainfall would normally equal about 70–90 mm (2.8–3.5 inches). However, automatic weather stations in the city registered between 150 and 200 mm (5.9–7.9 inches) of rain during the event, indicating that actual totals were several times higher than the monthly norm.

Governor Oleh Kiper said the region was now suffering from torrential rainfall for a second day, which had flooded roads, caused power outages, damaged property, and brought down trees.

Over 500 workers were deployed for rescue efforts, said the Governor. He also added that 42 000 customers in 32 villages and towns in the region were still temporarily without power.

Meanwhile, on October 1, schools in Odesa will operate remotely. According to Elena Buynevich, director of the Department of Education and Science of the Odesa City Council, the decision was made due to the need to eliminate the consequences of the storm. Thus, some schools have flooded classrooms, groups, and shelters.

While the storm has passed, authorities are continuing search and rescue operations along with relief efforts.

Rishav Kothari

I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.

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