QCOSTARICA – Strong winds, with gusts of up 90 km/h in some areas, wreaked havoc across the country, affecting power lines and trees and in one case in particular knocking down a McDonald’s sign.
It was around 10:00am Tuesday when the call was received at the Policia de Transito (Traffic Police) dispatch that the McDonald’s sign at the Centro Comercial de Guadalupe (northeast side of San Jose), was affecting traffic.
Authorities reported no injuries or damage to nearby structures.
The fallen sign did damage at least one vehicle. Witnesses outside the restaurant said they saw the sign fall on a car, whose owner, Luis Arnoldo Herrera López, told La Nacion he will be contacting his lawyer and looking to the Instituto Nacional de Seguro (INS) to pay for the damages, at least for the state insurer make sure the McDonald’s franchisee pays.
In Tibas, on January 6, a McDonald’s sign (a smaller one than that on Tuesday) was also taken down by strong winds.
Traffic conditions were further complicated by high winds falling trees on Tuesday in the areas of Curridabat and the San Jose airport, according to Policia de Transito reports.
Although the strong winds have diminished somewhat this morning Wednesday, gusts hitting highs of only 60 km/h, Diego Naranjo, of the national weather institute, the Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (IMN), say the strong winds are expected to continue until tomorrow, Thursday and possible into the weekend.
Photos from La Nacion, Crhoy, Diario Extra and Facebook
