Torrential Rain in Varna: Flooded Streets, Stranded Cars and Traffic Lights Out of Order

The BG-ALERT emergency warning system was activated in Varna due to torrential rain and strong winds. The downpours flooded boulevards, streets, underpasses, basements and ground-floor premises of commercial properties across the city. Traffic lights stopped working, buses ran late and some services were diverted.

By early afternoon, nearly 80 litres of rain per square metre had fallen in Varna. Strong winds brought down 13 trees, while one man had to be evacuated from his car. A total of 155 emergency calls were made to 112 between 10:00 and 13:30.

“The situation on the streets of Varna is terrible. Cars are stranded everywhere, buses are flooded. The coastal road, the railway station – everywhere is impassable.

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“It took me around 20–25 minutes,” a witness said.

The flooded streets caused traffic jams, while public transport buses were running behind schedule.

“My colleague arrived 40 minutes late. It's not just two cars behind – it's almost three buses behind, because the 209 runs every 15 minutes... It's becoming a nightmare,” a driver said.

Varna has no separate stormwater drainage system, and the domestic sewage network was unable to cope with the large volume of water. Some underpasses filled up to the ceiling. According to Varna Municipality, the problem was caused by the large quantity of leaves blown down by the strong winds and rain.

“A week ago, they came with a big vacuum cleaner to clear the leaves. But they didn't clear them properly. Half were removed, while they simply drove past the other half, just to make it look as though they had done some work,” one resident commented.

Residents also complained that they had been fined for trying to save their cars by moving them onto the pavement:

“Five minutes before the rain. They came, issued the fines while it was still raining, and left immediately. We had moved the cars onto the pavement beforehand, and then they came and fined us. What are we supposed to do? I called the head of municipal police, and he told me to sort it out myself!”

Photos: BTA

Teams from the company responsible for maintaining the street drains, together with firefighters, pumped water out of the affected areas. The authorities urged Varna residents to take particular care when travelling around the city.