Russia's weather service has issued an "orange" level alert — the second-highest threat warning — for Moscow city and region as severe winds blasted the Russian capital.
Wind speeds in Moscow are expected to intensify from 3-8 meters per second overnight to 5-10 meters per second later in the day Monday, even as temperatures remained above freezing in a record warm spell, according to the national hydrometeorological service, or Rosgidromet.
Occasional blasts of up to 12-17 meters per second had also been expected since Sunday, state news agency TASS reported, citing the weather service.
An orange level warning, which indicates "dangerous weather [with] a possibility of natural disasters and damages," according to Rosgidromet's five-level coding system, is second only to a red one, which indicates "very dangerous weather," carrying the risk of "major destruction and catastrophes."
The orange level alert was in place for the city and region of Moscow, even while surrounding regions received either yellow warnings, which indicate potential hazards, or green indicators of no alerts.
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