Spectacular thunderstorm in Eastern Norway – VG

The storm started in the Inland and has moved down towards the capital throughout the evening.

When VG calls the Oslo Fire and Rescue Service, duty commander Glenn Guldbrandsen gives the following comment:

– It is so hectic that I do not have time to talk to you now, says Gulbrandsen.

The police in Oslo have also noticed the storm. They have moved out to lightning in two homes on Thursday night – one in Bærum and one in the Tåsen area.

– In Bærum, lightning struck the pipe in a house. The message to us was that the molding in the house had come loose from the wall. Fortunately, it did not catch fire or cause injuries to people, says operations manager Vidar Pedersen, and adds that the residents have been told not to turn on the electrical system until an electrician has been on site and checked.

Do you have a video of the storm? Send it to us here

The residents of a house in the Tåsen area have been informed of the same.

– Some electrical equipment, including a TV, has been destroyed. The power went out and smoke came from an electrical outlet. Fortunately, no one was injured there either, says the operations manager.

Three to the emergency room

The police also responded to a report of a lightning strike that hit very close to an area where adults and young people spent the night outdoors in Vettakollen.

– We went out together with ambulance personnel, who considered that three boys at the age of 14 had to be followed up. They have been sent to the emergency room for safety reasons, but there is nothing to indicate that this is something serious, says operations manager Pedersen.

Just before 01 o’clock, the police say that it has calmed down a bit, and that they do not get as many calls as earlier in the evening.

– It was a period where it was at its worst that it was very
many who called us. We had to prioritize the most important phones, these were powerful issues here, says the operations manager.

Several lost power

At 23.20, 532 customers in Oslo municipality and 38 customers in Ringsaker were without electricity. Press officer in Elvia, formerly Hafslund, Morten Schau, says that they have good control.

– It thunders and lightning well, but so far it is going well. In Lommedalen we have a power outage, there are 40 customers who are without electricity right now.

How long it will take to correct is difficult to say according to Schau, as they do not know what the cause is.

– I reckon this is going reasonably well, we have emergency services and people at work. So people can take it easy, says Schau.

—

With the storm, there has also been heavy rainfall for short periods.

– Some private stations have shown up to 15-17 millimeters of precipitation in one hour, says state meteorologist Kjersti Strand to VG.

She says that the storm will probably last a few more hours. Throughout the evening, it has moved towards the capital.

The precipitation has also led to county road 287 having to close.

– They are conducting clean-up work there now that will take several hours, it is unknown when it will be reopened, says Tomas Eriksen, traffic operator at Veitrafikksentralen øst.

—

Eriksen says that it is raining well in Eastern Norway, and that it can affect driving conditions.

– We will probably notice it a little beyond the first part of the night here, then we will only see how it goes on the roads. Our clear call is to drive according to the conditions. With torrential rain, there is a lot of precipitation in a short time and then there is a danger of aquaplaning, says the traffic operator.

The Norwegian Meteorological Institute has issued a yellow warning for torrential rain for Eastern Norway and Telemark on Thursday.

The warning was about the danger of surface water in densely populated areas, local floods, stream and river course changes, landslides and floods where the rain showers hit.

Hail, lightning and thunder, and strong gusts of wind were also mentioned in the forecast.