Over 100 residents unite for cleanup after storm devastates Antanavas park

More than 100 residents of Antanavas, a village in Lithuania’s Kazlų Rūda municipality, have joined forces to clear damage caused by a severe storm that tore through the area on Friday, LRT reports.

The storm, which lasted only minutes, uprooted century-old trees in Antanavas Manor Park, ripped off roofs, and left streets blocked by debris. While no injuries were reported, the winds left behind a trail of destruction—downed power lines, shattered antennas, and splintered timber.

Local authorities and community members began emergency cleanup on Monday, with municipal workers cutting branches and clearing pathways. Residents described the storm as terrifying, with winds hurling tiles from roofs and toppling trees onto roads. “In 80 years, I’ve never seen anything like it,” said one witness, Vida, who initially mistook the chaos for an explosion.

Juozas, a local whose barn was destroyed, resigned himself to the loss: “People keep saying at least I’ll have firewood now. But that old barn? No fixing it—just patching it up until the next storm.” Others, like Drąsa, recounted the storm’s sudden fury: “The wind just tore through everything. My car was damaged, and we don’t even have insurance.”

Kazlų Rūda Mayor Mantas Varaška outlined the recovery plan, starting with removing unusable branches and debris, followed by replanting grass and leveling the ground. A larger community cleanup is scheduled for Thursday, with over 100 volunteers expected. “We want to restore things as quickly as possible,” Varaška said, adding that some of the salvaged wood would be donated to low-income and elderly residents for heating.

The park, maintained by the local community and seniūnija (eldership), had been undergoing restoration efforts, including reviving historic flowerbeds using archival sketches. Though the storm damaged around 80 trees, the park’s wooden hexagonal chapel remained intact. A long-term renewal project—featuring new pathways, lighting, and small architectural elements—is already in place and expected to be completed by late next year.

“It’s heartbreaking,” said Milda Krepenskienė, head of the Antanavas community. “We’d put so much work into restoring the park’s flowerbeds, with people bringing plants from their own gardens. Now we’ll have to start over.”

Gintautas, a worker from the Antanavas eldership, urged more volunteers to join: “This is where we live. There’s enough work for everyone.”