Thousands left without electricity in Sweden in the wake of powerful Storm Ciara

The strong winds and rain of Storm Ciara had subsided by Monday morning, but Västra Götaland may still be affected by flooding. Some roads were blocked by fallen trees, bridges closed off, and flights and train journeys were cancelled during the storm.

Several train routes in Skåne are expected to be reopened only after midday on Monday and some routes in western Sweden will only open in the afternoon. The strong winds have caused a stop in train traffic between Öxnered and Vänersborg, which affects all routes between Gothenburg, Trollhättan and Karlstad.

A car crashed into a tree that fell during the storm near Kristianstad. Photo: Johan Nilsson / TT

On Sunday evening, a boat capsized with two men onboard who were fishing in Svenljunga in Västra Götaland. One of them was found at a beach later in the evening, but the search for the other man was halted after dark.

“The assessment has been made that there is no longer any hope of finding the man alive in this cold,” said Fredrik Lovén from the local rescue service on Sunday evening.

On Monday morning, around 16,000 people in southern Sweden were left with no electricity.

Energy supplier Eon said it had assisted around 36,000 customers over the past 24 hours, while Ellevio had assisted around 9,000.

• Swedish word of the day: stormby

The storm reached its peak at around midnight and now calmer weather is forecast.

“It will be windy during the day but not like yesterday, there aren't many weather warnings apart from gales by the sea,” said SMHI's meteorologist. “We have removed one warning after another and downgraded Class 2 warnings [the middle level of severity on a three-point scale].”

The areas likely to be affected by the strongest winds are Bohuslän and Skåne, and it still won't be as severe as Sunday. But SMHI has warned for high water levels in the wake of the storm. 

Several bridges were closed on Sunday, including the Öresund Bridge that links southern Sweden with Denmark. This was reopened, but drivers of vehicles that are sensitive to wind were recommended to avoid driving over the bridge.