Radio România Internațional

Tag: bad weather

  • October 7, 2017 UPDATE

    October 7, 2017 UPDATE

    Tennis — The success scored by the Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, who becomes the new WTA world No. 1 on Monday, when the updated rankings are released, has been hailed by sports personalities from Romania and abroad. Simona received congratulations from her coach Australian Darren Cahill, the former Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci, the former German tennis player Boris Becker and the Romanian minister of youth and sports, Marius Alexandru Dunca. According to former Romanian tennis player Ilie Nastase, one of the best players of the 1970s and a former ATP world no.1 player, the most difficult part for Simona Halep is just starting now. Halep is the first Romanian player to become WTA World No. 1 after on Saturday she qualified to the WTA tournament final in Beijing. On Sunday she will meet Caroline Garcia of France. Simona Halep also becomes 25th WTA World No. 1 player.



    NATO – Romania needs to join the Schengen area so as to facilitate the movement of allied troops in Europe in case of conflict, said Saturday the Romanian defense minister Mihai Fifor at the 63rd annual meeting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly hosted by Bucharest. In turn, the Chief of General Staff of the Romanian Army, general Nicolae Ciucă, said Saturday that the recent facts he identified in the Black Sea area confirmed that the situation was deteriorating. He mentioned Russia’s actions, the crisis in Ukraine and the trans-national threats resulting from terrorism and migration. According to him, these actions are destabilizing the region, consequently all NATO members should remain vigilant. The Romanian foreign minister Teodor Meleşcanu also said that the deployment of Russian troops in the Black Sea is not targeting only this region but also the east of Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East. The NATO Parliamentary Assembly meeting is being attended by more than 50 delegations from NATO’s member or associate states.



    Madrid — Thousands of Spanish people calling for Spanish unity and dialogue attended rallies in Madrid and other cities across Spain against the backdrop of the separatists from Catalonia wanting to unilaterally declare the region’s independence in the following days, after last Sunday’s referendum was rejected as illegal by the Spanish justice. The government in Madrid once again called on the Catalan leaders to give up their declaration of independence. Also Spain’s government representative in Catalonia apologized to people hurt during police efforts to stop the referendum. On Sunday Barcelona will see another rally aimed at making a call for wisdom. The rally will also be attended by well-known writer Mario Vargas Llosa who labeled the Catalan separatism as a ‘disease’.



    Visa waiver — Including Romania in the Visa Waiver program and deepening the Strategic Partnership with the US were the topics discussed Saturday in Bucharest by the PM Mihai Tudose and the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Liviu Dragnea with a delegation of the American Congress. Romania will remain a trustworthy partner of the US and also a partner within NATO, the Romanian PM said. The American officials have in turn expressed support for the projects Romania is developing in the field of energy security.



    Migrants — 50 people, among whom 19 children and 10 women, risking drowning were saved by the Romanian border police who were on a mission in the Aegean Sea. The migrants were on an overcrowded inflatable boat in full danger of sinking. The migrants were subsequently landed in the port of Chios and handed over to the Greek authorities. Since the beginning of the year the Romanian police have rescued over 1,200 people on board small boats in danger of sinking in the territorial waters of Greece, shows a communiqué of the Border Police.



    Weather report – The south and southeast of Romania are under a code orange alert for bad weather until Sunday afternoon. Heavy rainfalls will be reported in these regions, the amount of water reaching 20-30 l/sq.m. In the rest of the territory, light rainfalls are expected mainly in the northwest. In the mountains, at more than 1,600 meters altitude snowfalls will be reported. The highs of the day ranged from 7 to 19 degrees C. (translation by L. Simion)

  • Reconstruction after extreme weather phenomena

    Reconstruction after extreme weather phenomena

    Ten counties in the west and centre of Romania, hit by powerful storms over the past few days, are to receive the equivalent of nearly 8 million euros in public funds. This is a first instalment of the aid pledged by the Government, and it will cover the costs of emergency repair works on public buildings.



    Deputy PM Sevil Shhaideh made the announcement: “We are talking about over 36 million lei for repair works on 16 hospitals, 23 clinics, more than 251 schools and other public education units, police stations, churches and other public buildings.”



    In the weeks to come, depending on the assessment reports received from local authorities, further funds will be earmarked from a special natural disaster intervention fund. Last Sunday, a storm that lasted no more than 15-20 minutes ravaged 15 counties in the west, north and centre of the country, killing 8 people and injuring 140 others. In over 200 towns and villages, the strong wind, sometimes exceeding 120 kmph, knocked down hundreds of trees and electricity poles, tore roofs and billboards and tipped over vehicles. Power outings were reported and localities were left without running water, while road and railway traffic was disrupted. The most severely affected area was Timis County, in the west.



    Last Sunday’s events disconcerted the authorities, who feared that similar occurrences would be reported on Wednesday and Thursday, when most of the country was swept by storms. The damages were smaller this time, but three more people died.



    Facing extreme weather phenomena, Romania must get a high-performance citizen alert system, as other European countries have. This is why PM Mihai Tudose said that twice a week deputy prime minister Marcel Ciolacu would have meetings with officials of the National Communications Authority, the Emergency Response Inspectorate, the Special Telecommunications Service and the 4 mobile telecoms operators in the country, in order to put together such an alert system.



    PM Mihai Tudose: “Meetings are held by deputy PM Ciolacu with National Communications Authority, the Emergency Response Inspectorate, the Special Telecommunications Service and the 4 mobile operators, to implement a system that we named RoAlert, designed to disseminate in due time any warning against phenomena that threaten people’s lives. Such alerts will be sent automatically to people’s mobile phones.”



    According to experts, as a consequence of global warming, extreme weather phenomena with very short warning times may become common in the near future.

  • September 17, 2017 UPDATE 2

    September 17, 2017 UPDATE 2

    Weather — Eight people died and several dozens were wounded in a violent storm that Sunday hit several counties in western Romania. Most of the victims are from Timiş county. Several areas in western Romania were under a code orange alert for bad weather on Sunday afternoon.



    UN General Assembly Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis will participate as of Monday until September 22 in the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly hosted by New York, the Presidential Administration announced on Sunday. During the session of debates the Romanian President will deliver a speech in which he will highlight the importance of an international order based on principles and rules, on the rule of law at international level, on the need to strengthen the UN and adapt it to the current challenges. The agenda of Romania’s president also includes participation in high-level meetings organized by Romania together with other states, a series of bilateral meetings with the UN Secretary General, with the president of the UN General Assembly as well as with his counterparts from other states. Klaus Iohannis will also participate in the reception hosted by President Donald Trump and will meet with the representatives of the main Jewish organizations in the US and with the representatives of the Romanian community in Philadelphia.



    Washington — The new Romanian defense minister Mihai Fifor is paying a 6-day working visit to Washington as of Sunday. According to a defense ministry communiqué, Mihai Fifor will meet with the American Secretary of Defense James Mattis, with the deputy national security advisor Ricky Waddell, with members of the US Congress and with representatives of the main companies in the American defense industry. The Romanian delegation accompanying the defense minister will participate in a military ceremony during which minister Fifor will lay a wreathe of flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arlington National Cemetery. According to the Romanian Defense Ministry, Romania’s Strategic Partnership with the US is one of the fundamental pillars of Romania’s defense and security, which contributes directly to the consolidation of its euro-Atlantic profile, remaining an essential priority in the current, complex regional and international security environment.



    Visit — European Commissioner for Security Union Julian King is paying an official visit to Romania on Monday. He will meet the PM Mihai Tudose, the justice minister Tudorel Toader and the interior minister Carmen Dan. Talks will focus on the anti-terror fight, the exchange of information, and the implementation of legislation recently adopted in the security field. The European Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Creţu will also be in Romania on Monday and Tuesday.



    Table Tennis – Romania’s women’s table tennis team on Sunday defeated Germany’s team 3-2 in the final of the European Championship in Luxembourg. This is their 4th continental title. The Romanian women’s team’s 3rd European title was won 12 years ago. Eliza Samara, Bernadette Szocs and Daniela Dodean-Monteiro are the athletes that won the final. Romania’s team also included Irina Ciobanu and Adina Diaconu. In the semifinals the Romanian players defeated Russia and Germany defeated the Netherlands. Germany was European champion at the previous three editions, holding a total of 7 gold medals.



    Davis Cup— Austria has won the Davis Cup playoffs after winning 3 singles against Romania’s team and losing only one double match. The matches were played in Austria, in the first-round playoffs to remain in the Europe/ Africa Group I. The score between Romania and Austria now stands at 3-all.



    Football — The Romanian Football Federation has reached a provisional agreement with the current coach of the football team Dinamo, the former international footballer Cosmin Contra, to take over the position of coach of the national team. He will replace the German Christoph Daum, the first foreign coach of Romania’s national team, whose contract was terminated following the Romanian team’s failure to qualify to the 2018 World Championship to be hosted by Russia. Aged 41, Cosmin Contra has previously coached other teams such as Timişoara, Petrolul and Getafe of Spain. His record as coach includes Romania’s Cup won by Petrolul and the League’s Cup won by Dinamo. Contra will make his debut as coach of the national team on October 5th in a home match against Kazakhstan. The last match of the group, against Denmark, will take place on October 8. (translation by L. Simion)

  • July 3, 2017 UPDATE

    July 3, 2017 UPDATE

    SUMMIT — Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday will attend the Three Seas Summit in Warsaw, bringing together countries around the Baltic Sea, Adriatic Sea, and the Black Sea. According to the presidency, the meeting will be attended by representatives from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Hungary. Attending the summit will also be US President Donald Trump. The initiative is aimed at providing political support for cooperation between the economies of countries around the three seas in areas such as energy, transportation, telecommunication and environment protection.




    JUSTICE — The Romanian Justice Ministry on Monday organised a second public debate on the revision of the criminal laws on the abuse of office. Attending the debate were representatives of the institutions with the legal system, magistrates’ associations and the academic field. Romania’s Constitutional Court found recently that the legal provisions in force, related to the abuse of office, are formulated vaguely and recommended the introduction of a ceiling.




    VERIFICATION — The Legal Inspection in Romania initiated on Monday the verification of the managerial efficiency at the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and the Prosecutor’s Office with the High Court of Cassation and Justice. Justice Minister Tudorel Toader has asked for these verifications, the first in ten years. Minister Toader said that the fight against corruption also involves prevention, not just sentences and convictions, and pointed out that there were cases when some of the people convicted were later found not guilty. On the other hand, the opposition party Save Romania Union, protested at the Justice Minister’s decision to initiate verifications at the anti-corruption institutions, saying that he is in fact supporting an attack against justice orchestrated by the ruling coalition.




    CENTRAL BANK — The National Bank of Romania decided on Monday to maintain the monetary policy interest rate at 1.75% per year. This rate has not been modified since May 2015. According to the Central Bank, the country ‘s economic growth in the first three months of the year was significant, with the annual dynamics of the GDP going up to 5.7% from 4.8% in the previous year. The annual inflation rate went up in May 2017 to 0.64%, slightly over the forecast level.




    THEATER — The ninth edition of the International Street Theatre Festival B-Fit in the Street started in Romania on Saturday. Hundreds of artists from France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Spain, Colombia, and Romania have scheduled over 40 street shows for the month of July. Events are held over weekends. Radio Romania Culture, Radio Romania International and Bucharest FM are media partners to the festival.




    DEFENSE – Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis convened the country’s Supreme Defense Council on Tuesday in Bucharest to discuss the Romanian Army’s equipping plan for 2017-2026 and the activity of the Romanian Intelligence Service in 2016. Also tackled will be the army’s contribution with troops to missions and operations outside Romania’s border in 2018.




    WEATHER – The heavy rainfall and storms have created big problems in a number of Romanian counties and in the capital Bucharest. Dozens of houses, public institutions and roads have been flooded. Skies are overcast over most of the country and further rain is expected. A code orange alert has been issued for extreme instability and rains, valid for 19 counties in the south, center, southeast and southwest, valid until Tuesday morning. These conditions come after a heat wave hit Romania late last week, with temperatures up to 44 degrees Celsius.


    (Translated by Elena Enache)






  • The Week in Review, April 17-22

    The Week in Review, April 17-22

    The first vice-president of the European Commission Frans Timmermans pays a formal visit to Bucharest


    The Romanian legal system has become a model for other members of the EU, and Romanian citizens should be proud of it, said the first vice-president of the European Commission Frans Timmermans, who was on a formal visit to Bucharest. After talks with Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu and Justice Minister Tudorel Toader, the European official gave assurances that Brussels will acknowledge the fulfillment of the 12 recommendations set under the mechanism for monitoring the Romanian judiciary as soon as soon as this has happened. Frans Timmermans has also voiced confidence that the best guarantee that the fight against corruption will continue are the Romanian citizens themselves. Under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism set up by the European Commission, the judicial systems in Romania and Bulgaria have been monitored ever since accession, in 2007, with the aim of overcoming deficiencies existing in the justice system and fighting corruption in these countries. In turn, Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu has stated he would like to see the Mechanism completed before Romania takes over the presidency of the EU Council. We will carry on with the major progress registered in the field of the judiciary and we will make sure justice in Romania is fair and independent, the Romanian Prime Minister also said.




    The IMF improves its forecast regarding Romanian economy in 2017


    The IMF has revised upwards, from 3.8% to 4.2%, its forecasts regarding the Romanian economy this year, according to the latest economic outlook report made public ahead of its spring meeting. According to the IMF, in 2017 Romania will have the second-highest growth rate in Europe, after Iceland (5.7%). Next year, Romania is expected to record a growth rate of 3.4%. As regards world economy, the IMF estimates a good growth rate next year as well. Acceleration will be largely felt both in the developed and in the emerging economies, but also in the weaker ones, in particular in the manufacturing and trading sectors.




    Romania strengthens its defense sector


    Romania plans to buy Patriot missile systems and HIMARS rocket launchers, the Romanian Army Chief of Staff Nicolae Ciuca has announced. The Defense Ministry has already sent an application to the US government, given that both systems are manufactured by US companies. Procurement procedures are scheduled to start this year. The Romanian Chief of Staff has stated that the Patriot system fits Romanias integrated multi-level air defense system. General Ciuca made the statement at the Smardan shooting range in Galati County, south-eastern Romania, which on Thursday hosted a tactical shooting drill, with real ammunition. 350 Romanian and US soldiers participated in the drill. Here is the Army Chief of Staff Nicolae Ciuca speaking of the importance of the drill:



    Nicolae Ciuca: “This is a drill that helps increase the level of interoperability and reach the joint standards of our armies. Also, it is part of a process under which the Romanian army is consolidating its status as member of NATO and of the EU. The US soldiers are in Romania as part of the operation Atlantic Resolve, aimed at strengthening NATOs eastern flank and deterring any potential act of aggression in the Black Sea area.




    As of May 1st, Romanians will travel to Canada without visas


    The Canadian embassy in Bucharest announced on Wednesday that the first stage in the process of lifting mandatory visas for Romanians traveling to Canada starts on May 1st. As of that date, the Romanian citizens who have had a visa in the past ten years or who have a visa to entry the USA, can apply for an electronic travel authorization, ETA, which replaces the visa and is valid for a period of five years. The provision only applies to those who travel by plane or transit a Canadian airport. People who want to enter Canada using other means of transport will still need visas. These requirements are to be waived in December, when the Canadian government intends to lift restrictions for all the Romanian citizens.




    Bad weather hits Romania


    Three quarters of Romanias territory has been under codes orange or yellow alert for snow or heavy rain, strong wind and low temperatures, which is quite unusual for this time of the year. Romanian weather experts have explained that the bad weather was triggered by a trans-Balkan cyclone, which is crossing Romania these days. Strong gusts of wind cut off electricity in dozens of villages in the east and south-east. Also, because of the blizzard, several national road sectors were closed in the east, but also in the south and centre, were local and county roads were also affected. The bad weather also affected the railways. Several trains were delayed by blizzard and strong winds. Also because of the wind, the Romanian ports on the Black Sea were temporarily closed and several international flights were cancelled.


    (translated by: Mihaela Ignatescu)

  • April 20, 2017 UPDATE

    April 20, 2017 UPDATE

    VISIT — Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu on Thursday said his objective is to lift the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism in the field of the judiciary before Romania takes over the rotating presidency of the European Council in 2019. This means Romania should get a final positive report, Sorin Grindeanu said, adding that the Government will continue to guarantee the fairness and independence of the judiciary. The declaration was made during his meeting with European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans, who is on an official visit to Bucharest. The EU official said each citizen deserves to live in a rule of law, and that good results have been obtained under the CVM. According to Frans Timmermans, right now Bucharest is at the end of a very long marathon, and it needs to observe the recommendations of the European Commission regarding its justice system.



    ECONOMIC FIGURES— Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu on Thursday announced Romania reported a budget surplus of 360 million euros, accounting for 0.2% of the GDP, in the first three months of the year. The Prime Minister said the VAT collection rate went up by 2.5% in February as compared to the same month last year, and by 8.9% in March as compared to the same period in 2016. Sorin Grindeanu said a total of 62,000 new jobs were made available in the first quarter of the year.



    COOPERATION — Austria and Romania will cooperate to have successful mandates at the helm of the European Council in the second half of 2018 and the first half of 2019 respectively, the Minister Delegate for European Affairs Ana Birchall said on Thursday. According to a Foreign Ministry press release, Ana Birchall met with Austrian Minister for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs, Sebastian Kurz, during her official visit to Vienna. Talks focused on hot topics on the European agenda and of mutual interest to both states, with a focus on furthering cooperation in the field of European affairs. The Danube Strategy, the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership were also on the agenda of the meeting.



    MILITARY — Chief of General Staff General Nicolae Ciuca on Thursday said Romania will be purchasing US Patriot missiles, as part of a national program to purchase military equipment. Patriot is an advanced ground to air missile that can target fighter jets. The announcement was made at a press conference in Smardan, eastern Romania, currently hosting a joint US-Romanian military exercise. Taking part were Romanian officials from the government and the armed forces as well as representatives of the US Embassy.



    ALARMS — Romania continues its widest ranging exercise to test alarm system at a national level. Emergency sirens were tested between 10 AM and 3 PM in 11 counties and Bucharest. The sirens are supposed to announce chemical accidents, air attacks, or severe flooding, and can be heard on a radius of around 500 meters. 7,700 such sirens are distributed around the country for civil protection. The exercise, concluding Friday, is supposed to measure speed of reaction in case of emergency, as well as coverage of alarms, in addition to response measure awareness.



    MEETING — European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said his meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday was positive, underlining the mutual interest of observing the rights of EU citizens after Brexit. President Tajani said they agreed on the need to solve the issue of the rights of EU citizens living in Great Britain, as well as of Brits living in other EU states. In turn, a British Government spokesman said May and Tajani agreed on the need to maintain close ties between London and Brussels after Brexit and to offer ‘security’ to EU citizens as regards their legal status after Brexit.



    GYMNASTICS — Romanian athlete Marian Dragulescu qualified to the floor event finals and the vault finals in the European Gymnastics Championships. The event is hosted by the Romanian city of Cluj, which wraps up on April 23. This edition is attended by 274 athletes from 37 countries. Romanian gymnastics legend Nadia Comaneci is ambassador for the European Championships. The last edition of this event hosted by Romania took place in 1957.



    TENNIS — Romanias womens tennis team plays at home this weekend, taking on the UKs team, in a bid to hold on to their place in the world group in the Fed Cup. The games are scheduled for April 22 and 23, in the resort of Mamaia, on the Black Sea coast. Romanias team is made up of Simona Halep, 5th ranked, Irina Begu, 33rd ranked, Monica Niculescu, 47th WTA, and Sorana Cirstea, 61st WTA. The UK brings into play two top 100 players, Johanna Konta, 10th ranked, and Heather Watson, 72nd ranked. Romania and the UK have faced off five times so far in the Fed Cup, with the Romanians winning four times.



    WEATHER — Bad weather will continue to afflict Romania over the next couple of days. Rain, snow, gales and low temperatures have caused the authorities to extend a code yellow until Friday at noon, taking into consideration the snow in the mountains as well. A code orange alert is in place until noon on Friday in the eastern and southern Carpathians as well, with wind expected to reach speeds of up to 80 to 90 km/h. The worsening of the weather has affected road traffic. Several flights have been delayed by the weather on Cluj International Airport. A few localities in the north and southeast were left without power. Bad weather is affecting several countries in Europe as well, with closed highways in Austria, strong wind in Italy and heavy snowfalls in eastern Ukraine. The Czech Republic, Poland, Serbia and Hungary are also hit by a wave of bad weather.

  • Romania in the grip of bad weather

    Romania in the grip of bad weather

    In Bucharest, the National Meteorology Administration announced a few days ago that the country would be taken under assault by strong winds, heavy snowstorms and low visibility. Forecasts were right and now most of the country is now under orange or yellow code alert for heavy snow and blizzard. Six counties in the south-east are in a dire situation, and the code red warning has been activated for them.



    The national highway linking Bucharest to Constanta has been closed, and now the county on the Black Sea coast is completely isolated. In many villages, thousands of households have no electricity or running water, and the situation is getting worse by the hour. Authorities have urged citizens to avoid traveling, unless necessary. Because of the blizzard, dozens of train trips have been cancelled and all news stations are displaying footages of long rows of cars stranded in the snow. Lots of flights have been delayed and the Mihail Kogalniceanu airport in Constanta County was closed. Also, the ports on the Black Sea have been closed, where the storm has reached level 8, with 9-meter high waves.



    Road traffic has been resumed in the areas where the weather has got milder, but there are still restrictions in place for trucks weighing more than 7.5 tones. Pregnant women in the third trimester and patients needing dialysis were taken to hospitals before the weather got bad, in order to avoid the situation of the previous years, when helicopters were needed to save the seriously ill patients stranded in the snow. Firefighters say that more than 640 people suffering from various diseases and 170 pregnant women have been evacuated from the areas affected by heavy snowing and taken to medical units to get proper care. Intervention teams are operating to unblock the roads, but heavy snows and powerful winds hamper their activity.



    In Bucharest, fire fighters have even had to intervene and remove tress felled by the blizzard. On Thursday night, the capital was under code orange alert and no less then 700 calls were made to the Ambulance Services, all of which were solved, despite difficulties. 60 homeless people were taken either to hospital or to municipality shelters.


    (Translated by Mihaela Ignatescu)