Gale force winds sweep across Adriatic Sea, Croatian coast

ZAGREB, Croatia – Gale force winds have swept across much of the Croatian Adriatic coast, toppling trees, damaging cars and shattering windows.

There were no reports of major injuries.

Croatia’s weather bureau said Saturday that gusts in the region of the Adriatic port of Split reached 191 kilometres per hour (118 mph).

Land, air and sea traffic have been disrupted and several small wind-driven fires have erupted on the central Dalmatian coast. One firefighter was slightly injured while tackling the blaze.

Some streets in Split and surrounding towns have been closed because of flying glass and tiles.

Across the Adriatic in Italy, the Turkish cargo ship Efe Murat was driven aground Saturday due to strong winds in the southeastern port of Bari. In Guidonia, strong winds knocked a tree down on a car, killing the driver.

In Bansko, Bulgaria, the men’s World Cup super-G competition was cancelled due to bad weather.