18 injured when thunderstorm hits Romanian capital

BUCHAREST (AP) - The authorities say 18 people have been taken to hospitals, including one in a coma, after a tent collapsed when heavy rain and strong winds hit the Romanian capital.

Interior Ministry spokesman Andra Chesaru said trees were uprooted in and around the capital and billboards collapsed during the hour-long thunderstorm. The National Weather Institute says winds reached 80kmh.

Some 17,000 residents were without electric power near the capital, the authorities said.

Four flights that were scheduled to land at Bucharest's Henri Coanda Airport were diverted to the Black Sea port of Constanta because of the storm, transportation officials said.

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