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IN PICTURES: Swedes go for a swim in rail station underpass after torrential rain caused floods

The Local Sweden
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IN PICTURES: Swedes go for a swim in rail station underpass after torrential rain caused floods
The underpass exit from Uppsala's central rail station flooded, forcing commuters to wade (or swim) their way out. Photo: Photo: Anton Emanuelsson/TT

Images of a group of Swedes turning the inconvenience of flooding in central Uppsala into an opportunity to relax have gone viral, after they were photographed swimming through the central rail station’s underpass with inflatables and water pistols.

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A prolonged dry period that has contributed to a summer filled with wildfires in Sweden saw brief respite at the weekend as storms brought sudden heavy rain. Not least in Uppsala, where the underpass leading out of the central rail station to the city centre flooded to knee-height.

Some chose to wade angrily through the water, but others decided to make the best of the situation, going for a unique – if not entirely hygienic – swim and even using inflatables to turn the inconvenience into a relaxing occasion.

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Several images of the revelers have gone viral, including a video where a man is captured firing a water pistol as he floats along on a rubber ring, wearing a scuba mask.

"I wouldn’t say it was the freshest water I’ve ever bathed in, so I had to have a real scrub in the shower afterwards," photographer Sarah Thorén who filmed the video joked to The Local.

Following a delay caused by confusion over who was responsible for dealing with the water (the local municipality, the train station, or the Swedish Transport Administration), it was finally pumped out by Uppsala municipality late on Sunday night and the underpass is now back to normal.

READ ALSO: What you need to know about Sweden's historic wildfire outbreak

Check out more images of the temporary swimming pool below.

 

God mode #uppsala #regn #wtf

A post shared by Sebastian Borg (@lil_burk_) on Jul 29, 2018 at 7:04am PDT

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