Hardest hit in the afternoon was south-western Finland, with the storm front then moving across southern and central areas including Häme and Pirkanmaa, near Tampere.
At the storm’s peak more than 8,000 customers of the largest utility, Fortum, lost power. By late evening around 1,000 of them were still suffering blackouts. Power was restored by Friday morning. The longest cuts in power lasted four hours. Most were caused by trees falling on electric lines.
The company said it had reserved six times its regular workforce to cope with interruptions in service.
Smaller numbers of Vattenfall customers also lost electricity. Almost all were back on line by early morning.
Gusty Gulf
By Friday morning, Midsummer’s Eve, the rain front had moved up to southern Lapland and there was partial clearing in the south.
The highest winds were recorded on western parts of the Gulf of Finland. For instance the island of Russarö off the southernmost Hanko peninsula was buffeted by winds of 23 metres per second.
No serious injuries or damage has been reported, though.