As authorities in Yerevan and elsewhere in Armenia are estimating the damage caused by strong winds, the country’s meteorological services forecast more “unstable” weather for the coming days, though ruling out the repetition of the kind of squall that played havoc with populated areas in the country on May 23.

Strong winds are not uncommon in Armenia during this time of the year, but yesterday’s gale that took quite a few residents by surprise was admittedly the strongest in years.

According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the wind whose speed reached up to 24 meters per second caused considerable destruction in Yerevan and some other regions of Armenia. A total of 446 cases were registered, with 379 of them in the capital city.

Thus, the wind ripped off roofs from buildings, fell trees, broke traffic lights, road signs, billboards and electric wires, causing other damage to shops, residential buildings and infrastructure. Thus, the roof of the Chamber Music Hall in Yerevan was also blown away to a nearby park.

An ambulance service reported that nine people who received injuries as a result of the calamity were treated by medics, with seven of them taken to hospital for the purpose. A representative of the service said the injuries were not serious. Thus, one person was reportedly hurt with an item falling from a roof and another was hurt when a tree fell down.

Social media in Armenia also actively reacted to the storm, with photographs and videos showing how nature plays havoc with buildings and infrastructure posted by users.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations’ Hydro-Meteorological Service says the likelihood of similar strong winds in Armenia in the coming days remains low, though it adds that the “unstable weather regime” conditioned by the presence of a cyclone in the region will continue.

As of Tuesday afternoon, rainy weather with occasional winds was observed in Yerevan and other areas of Armenia.