When it rains, it pours, they say. And, right now, this is pretty accurate for how things stand in Romania – with the mention that literal rain is replaced by an ever-lasting drought.
This brings plenty of wildfires throughout the country – from small and localized ones like the one I shared/filmed in my previous update, to larger ones destroying hundreds of acres of land or forest.
And strong winds are also becoming the norm of these sudden storms – with one of them wreaking havoc at the village house.
Here’s how things looked just a week ago, after such a storm (with a strong wind that only lasted some 30 seconds according to the neighbors):
Storms such as the one above are becoming more and more common in Romania, unfortunately. Villages, small towns and large cities – all of them are affected.
We were lucky that we weren’t at the village house when this storm hit, otherwise our car would’ve been under that pile of roof/wood and other debris. And even better, the main house was not affected.
But the damage is substantial, as you can see. And when finances are tight, things look even worse.
The worst part is that we had both optional and mandatory insurance, but none of the damage is covered because of a technicality. When the insurance policy was done, our agent told us that we must pay an optional bit for a building under construction (as the part with the blown roof wasn’t fully built).
However, the insurance agency told us that it was wrong – that “building under construction” only refers to the main building, and not structures that are not glued to it. That would’ve been covered by an additional option that insured annex buildings. Which the agent didn’t know or tell us – so none of this damage was covered.
But… despite all these… I have to stay positive. Life finds a way… and life keeps going:
Wildfires are burning Romania down
Apart from these terrible storms (there was a massive one in the Constanta region that caused a ton of damage due to heavy rainfall), forest fires are becoming more and more dangerous.
Just in our area, close to Drobeta Turnu Severin, there are constant fires that authorities are having a difficult time putting down. And as soon as they manage to get a fire under control, another starts in a different region.
Hundreds of acres were burned down, with the fires requiring days to be extinguished. You can see some coverage of these terrible storms and fires (in Romanian) below:
- Digi.ro article about the Constanta floods
- Massive fires in Mehedinti county
You can also check out this video posted by the firefighters trying to get another massive fire under control (it’s pretty scary):
It’s so bad that, even though the fires are at least some 20 kilometers away from the city, the smell of smoke is really bad – especially during the evenings, in the city itself. As a result, we spend most of the days with the windows closed, so we don’t breathe that foul air.
The nature is starting to fight back and I worry that this is just the beginning. It’s not just Romania that is burning, the entire world is. Yet, most people are still blind to this and don’t care.
Plans & repairs
Tomorrow (based on the date of publishing this article), I will have a team at the village house to estimate the costs for fixing the storm damage. I will keep you updated with costs & progress.
Apart from the damage you can see in the photos, the biggest problem (and probably most expensive) is related to the electrical wiring. All the wires leading from the house to the new buildings and garage were destroyed, and in the process, half of the electrical wiring in the house itself is no longer working.
Since that is an old setup, we’ll have to replace everything from scratch. And that will cost a ton. We have emergency funds, fortunately, but it’s never a pleasure to have to spend them.
But at least this will give me plenty of things to write about – and help you understand how building/renovating works in Romanian villages, where everything should be cheaper, but also more difficult to do since teams are always overbooked.
I hope you are safe wherever you are and that the nature’s wrath is away from your living area.
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That’s a lot of damage! The wildfires have also affected the USA. I was in California when many of the forests were burning there. Our favorite restaurant on the Big Sur coast was in danger of burning down. Even in Monterey the air had a strong smell of burnt wood. Senior citizens in my Dad’s assisted living complex were told to stay indoors and not to breathe the outside air. These events will become more common as climate change progresses.
I am sorry to hear that! But yes, I agree – these things will become more and more common. Even the people in the village were complaining about the never-seen-before heat, drought… and now these terrible winds.
As Californian, I know all about wildfires. I almost had to evacuate one year. There was ash all over the place and so much of it collected in my swimming pool. Other parts of the country get wild storms, so I feel for you friend. Hopefully your place will be repaired soon.
The fires are new in the region, but are becoming more and more common. So hopefully we’ll get used to dealing with them better – or ideally prevent them.