Poland Braces for Winter Storm as Sri Lanka Suffers Catastrophic Flooding.
Temperatures plummeted across eastern Europe this week, with the Alps witnessing extremely low temperatures, including -20C and a chilling -8.5°C in Zakopane, a town in the Polish Tatra Mountains. Heavy snowfall also hit other parts of Poland, dumping 15-20cm on central regions and a whopping 40cm closer to the mountains.
The inclement weather was caused by an area of low pressure that moved up from the Balkans and collided with Arctic cold air over Poland. As a result, 2,900 emergency calls were made due to power outages, leaving 75,000 homes in Rzeszów without electricity. In a bizarre incident, an Embraer E170STD aircraft veered off the runway onto a grass verge during a flight from Warsaw to Vilnius, Lithuania, causing air traffic delays for several hours and grounding the return flight.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Sri Lanka was facing an entirely different kind of storm. Heavy rainfall turned into catastrophic flooding in many parts of the country, with over 250mm falling in just 24 hours, exceeding the annual average by far. The extreme weather led to widespread destruction, with up to 425 homes damaged by mudslides and 40 people dead.
A staggering 1,800 families were forced to take shelter in temporary accommodations due to the disaster. The full extent of the damage is still being assessed, but it's clear that Sri Lanka has been hit with one of its worst floods in recent memory. As the country struggles to recover, aid efforts are underway to help those affected by this devastating natural disaster.
The combination of intense rainfall and unique topography contributed to the catastrophic flooding. When clouds rise over mountains, they cool and condense, forming orographic clouds that can intensify rainfall. The resulting rain drops merge with existing precipitation from higher altitudes, creating a perfect storm of heavy downpours that left Sri Lanka reeling.
Temperatures plummeted across eastern Europe this week, with the Alps witnessing extremely low temperatures, including -20C and a chilling -8.5°C in Zakopane, a town in the Polish Tatra Mountains. Heavy snowfall also hit other parts of Poland, dumping 15-20cm on central regions and a whopping 40cm closer to the mountains.
The inclement weather was caused by an area of low pressure that moved up from the Balkans and collided with Arctic cold air over Poland. As a result, 2,900 emergency calls were made due to power outages, leaving 75,000 homes in Rzeszów without electricity. In a bizarre incident, an Embraer E170STD aircraft veered off the runway onto a grass verge during a flight from Warsaw to Vilnius, Lithuania, causing air traffic delays for several hours and grounding the return flight.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Sri Lanka was facing an entirely different kind of storm. Heavy rainfall turned into catastrophic flooding in many parts of the country, with over 250mm falling in just 24 hours, exceeding the annual average by far. The extreme weather led to widespread destruction, with up to 425 homes damaged by mudslides and 40 people dead.
A staggering 1,800 families were forced to take shelter in temporary accommodations due to the disaster. The full extent of the damage is still being assessed, but it's clear that Sri Lanka has been hit with one of its worst floods in recent memory. As the country struggles to recover, aid efforts are underway to help those affected by this devastating natural disaster.
The combination of intense rainfall and unique topography contributed to the catastrophic flooding. When clouds rise over mountains, they cool and condense, forming orographic clouds that can intensify rainfall. The resulting rain drops merge with existing precipitation from higher altitudes, creating a perfect storm of heavy downpours that left Sri Lanka reeling.
and meanwhile sri lanka is getting absolutely annihilated by flooding no wonder they need more aid I mean, who needs a beach vacation when you can have mudslides 
. I mean, -20C in the Alps? That's just insane 
! And 40cm of snow in Poland? My car is definitely going to be stuck in the driveway for a while 
. On a more serious note, it's so sad to hear about Sri Lanka getting hit with all that flooding 
. I can only imagine how devastating it must be for those families who lost their homes. The whole orographic cloud thing is really interesting though... like, I never knew clouds could just form like that over mountains 
. Anyway, hope everyone stays safe and warm during this crazy winter storm 
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15-20cm in central regions & 40cm near the mountains?! 
75,000 homes left without electricity is a lot, fam 
️ The combo of intense rainfall & unique topography led to catastrophic flooding... it's like they say, when clouds rise over mountains, they cool and condense, forming orographic clouds that can intensify rainfall 
Aid efforts are underway, but I'm sure it's gonna be a long road to recovery for Sri Lanka 
. The numbers don't lie: 425 homes damaged & 40 people lost their lives 
Still trying to process all this... 
. And those 1,800 families struggling to find shelter? Unbelievable. Natural disasters are one thing, but it's how we respond that really matters 
it's like Mother Nature is just trying to remind us that we're not in control here.
so let's just send some good vibes to Poland and Sri Lanka, 'kay? 
, first it's -20C in Poland and 40cm of snow in some areas lol, but then it's catastrophic flooding in Sri Lanka 
like 250mm of rain in one day?! that's insane 
. I'm no expert but it sounds like the combination of intense rainfall and mountains really made things bad for them. poor people who lost their homes to mudslides 
. Like, Poland is all snowy and stuff, but at least they have hot chocolate to warm up 
Meanwhile in Sri Lanka, it's like they're swimming through the streets 
️ 250mm of rain in just 24 hours? That's insane! And to think it was caused by orographic clouds... that's some wild science behind the weather 
And 40cm of snow in Poland? That's like a whole lot of shoveling! 
But seriously, who needs an Embraer E170STD plane crash when you have floods that destroy homes and kill people? 
. And on top of that, Sri Lanka is dealing with catastrophic flooding... it's like the world is just one big mess right now 