Published: 20/08/2024 – 15:10 CEST•The latest developments 21/08/2024 – 0:57 CEST
There was rain and thunderstorms in several places in Budapest on the eve of the national holiday, and finally the “play of fire and light” took place without disturbance from ten in the evening.
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Earlier, after several conflicting information, it was announced on loudspeakers in Budapest that the fireworks display would be postponed from nine to ten o’clock. Earlier, conflicting information was given, after no storm had broken out, but there was continuous lightning in Budapest.
“The operational team intensively monitored the weather-related developments throughout the day and evaluated the weather-related developments every hour. According to the current forecast and our knowledge, the weather will be favorable over Budapest in the evening hours, so the St. Stephen’s Day festive fireworks can be held at the planned time, at 9 p.m.” , Zoltán Kovács wrote on his social media page ten minutes after seven in the evening.
“If there is an unexpected unfavorable change in the weather, the operational staff can immediately intervene and provide information without delay.”
The operational team responsible for organizing the series of programs for the national holiday monitored the weather forecasts throughout the day. In the early afternoon, State Secretary Zoltán Kovács wrote on Facebook that, according to meteorological forecasts, several waves of showers and thunderstorms will arrive in the capital in the afternoon, and the weather in the evening is still uncertain. At that time, he also announced that a decision regarding the fireworks would be made at 3 p.m.
At the specified time, Zoltán Kovács told M1 that an unusual situation had arisen from a weather point of view, and there was a lot of uncertainty in the atmosphere. “We don’t see the evening exactly ahead of time, that’s why we decided to assess the situation every hour, keeping in mind the safety of people and events, we will constantly inform people about the developments,” he added.
Hungaromet Zrt. previously issued a first-degree, lemon-yellow alert. The website of the Hungarian Meteorological Service has warned of thunderstorms in the capital and several counties. “Lightning is the primary source of danger, and in addition, strong winds and hail may occur in some cases!” – can be read on their website.
