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ACCIDENT

Lightning injures 13 at Roman festival

Thirteen people were injured, seven of them very seriously when lightning struck a popular Roman festival in North Rhine-Westphalia on Saturday.

Published: 28 June 2009 11:00 CEST
Lightning injures 13 at Roman festival
Photo: DPA

Medical teams battled to reanimate a 13-year-old girl and an adult man at the showground in Xanten, before rushing them to hospital.

A storm had hit the festival where more than 20,000 visitors had showed up to see more than 400 people dressed as Roman soldiers, gladiators, craftsmen and traders.

Many of the visitors took shelter under trees, who of which were struck by lightning, injuring people standing nearby.

More than 70 emergency staff were called to the site, and used a helicopter as well as ambulances to take the injured to hospitals.

The festival, which bills itself as the biggest Romans gathering in Europe, was due to continue on Sunday, was cancelled.

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WEATHER

‘Turbo spring’: Germany to see temperatures above 25C

Germany is set for a blast of warm weather in the coming week as the colder spell eases off.

Published: 26 April 2024 16:56 CEST
'Turbo spring': Germany to see temperatures above 25C

“The late winter weather of the past few days with frost and snow is a thing of the past for the time being, and spring will kick into turbo gear over the next few days,” said meteorologist Adrian Leyser from the German Weather Service (DWD) on Friday.

Temperatures are expected to rise sharply over the weekend with plenty of sunshine, forecasters said. In Germany anything above 25C is classed as a summer day. “The summer mark of 25C will be cracked regionally as early as Sunday,” said Leyser.

It comes as snow and hail hit Germany last week, and temperatures fell below freezing in some places.

But showers and thunderstorms are still possible in the west and north of Germany. Maximum temperatures there are expected to reach around 20C. 

According to the DWD, spring will get a little damper on Monday, with a few rain spells.  “However, the next low pressure system over Western Europe is preparing to turn on the warm air jet again from Tuesday,” said the meteorologist.

On Wednesday – which is a public holiday across Germany for International Workers’ Day – temperatures could soar nearer 30C. 

“In the south and east, we are even approaching the 30C mark,” said Leyser. However, the weather will remain “susceptible to disruption”, said Leyser, especially in the west where there is a risk of isolated and sometimes severe thunderstorms.

READ ALSO: What to do on May 1st in Germany

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