UPDATE: Storm “Berit” which swept several regions in Norway is now officially over, but the forecasters have issued severe weather warnings for Vestla

UPDATE: Storm “Berit” which swept several regions in Norway is now officially over, but the forecasters have issued severe weather warnings for Vestlandet and Trøndelag.

Oil rig in the North Sea (illustration photo)
Photo: Stig Nygaard/Flickr

Following Friday’s extreme weather warnings for places such as the coast of Møre og Romsdal up to Sør-Troms, the Meteorological Office now says it expects winds to reach gale force 10 (storm) on the Rogaland coast south of Stad, with strong gale (force 9) in other parts. Weathermen expect it to lessen this evening.

Still in Rogaland, police say two men, aged 25 and 27, are missing off the coast of Egersund after being swept out to sea earlier this afternoon. Both were part of a film crew that were filming in Sokndal at the time. Weather conditions in the area made it impossible for divers to go into the water.

The search, using a Sea King and air ambulance, was called off this evening at 18:32 and relatives informed. Police and volunteers will resume the operation on the beach tomorrow morning.

Strong winds in Stavanger also caused police to close off parts of the city centre in fears the strong winds could cause loose objects to injure people and damage vehicles.

In Hordaland, although winds will decrease this evening, forecasters warn of gale force 9 winds. Similar conditions are expected for Sogn og Fjordane, with Sør-Trøndelag and Nord-Trøndelag experiencing strong gales tonight, decreasing tomorrow morning.

For other regions, gale force 9-10 weather warnings have also been issued for coastal regions of Agder, with short-term strong gales expected in parts of Telemark, Østfold, and Vestfold. Waters in these regions, as well as Oslo, Akershus, and Buskerud will be between 40 and 90 centimetres above normal maximum tide levels for this time of year.

Color Line was forced to cancel all of its sailings between Norway, Denmark, and Sweden today because of strong winds and heavy seas.

Whilst sailings to Kiel proceeded as planned, Communications Director Helge Otto Mathisen said, "Approximately 9,000 passengers are affected. We will lay on additional routes between Kristiansand and Larvik to Hirtshals tomorrowat 08.00, with the Super Speed ​​1 return from Hirtshals to Kristiansand at 12.15 and from Hirtshals to Larvik at 24:45. We apologize for the inconvenience for our passengers."

Meanwhile, reports suggest few citizens of Troms and Finnmark suffered from injuries due to “Berit” at the weekend, but some areas of Norway such as Bodø had 410 centimetres of water above normal water levels, beating the previous 1979 record by 6cm. Record water levels also hit Tromsø.

Friday night was dramatic for the residents of Værøy Municipality in the county of Nordland when winds reached 45 knots, destroying both the ferry and helicopter landing sites. Arrangements in connection with Advent have been delayed until after 4^th December. Harald Adolfsen, the Mayor of Værøy, admitted he was frightened.

“I felt powerless and scared on Friday evening. You cannot do anything when the forces of nature act like that. I have lived in Værøy all my life and have never experienced anything like it. Now I'm just glad that no one has been injured or killed,” the 58-year-old told Aftenposten.

According NRK, Finance Norway (FNO), the trade organisation for banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions, reports 275 claims have been lodged for compensation totalling 25 million kroner in the wake of “Berit” this weekend. Numbers are expected to rise.