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WEATHER

IN PICTURES: Storms and floods strike across western Germany

Firefighters and police were called out numerous times on Thursday evening as thunderstorms brought traffic to a standstill, overturned trees and flooded cellars.

Published: 4 June 2021 13:10 CEST
IN PICTURES: Storms and floods strike across western Germany
A fireman crosses a flooded street in Bottrop, North Rhine-Westphalia on Thursday, June 3rd. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/Feuerwehr Bottrop
 
Extreme weather struck the western and central German states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Hessen on Thursday evening, with thunder, torrential downpour and hailstones wreaking havoc in the region. 
 
 
The German Weather Service (DWD) urged residents of those areas to stay “vigilant” as they warned of oncoming thunderstorms, hail and downpour on Twitter on Thursday. 

As thunderstorms picked up throughout the evening, firefighters were called out to deal with numerous incidents of falling trees, flooded streets and waterlogged cellars. In the town of Bottrop, North Rhine-Westphalia, a fir tree was struck by lightening and burst into flames – but the fire was quickly extinguished by the heavy rains, local residents and firefighters. 
 
Meanwhile, in the municipality of Laer near Münster, police reported that an overflowing brook had caused both streets and cellars to flood. 
 
In other parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, the gales were so strong they overturned trees. In the city of Braubach, a parked car was buried under fallen branches during the thunderstorm, causing firefighters to be called out to the scene.

Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Thomas Frey
 
The Ruhr area was also struck by heavy rainfall and thunder. In Essen, firefighters and police officers were called out as taxis and other drivers became stranded in flooded streets and manhole covers burst open. 

Photo: picture alliance/dpa/TNN | Markus Gayk
 
A section of the B42 motorway, which runs between Bonn and Darmstadt, also had to be cordoned off due to a fallen tree. On another part of the motorway, firefighters were called out to deal with a landslide caused by the storms. 

Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Thomas Frey
 
Hailstorms accompanied the heavy winds and thunder, with hailstones as large as two centimetres wide.

Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Thomas Frey
 
Across the region, residents complained of their cellars being flooded as the rain continued well into the night, finally tapering off around 4am.

Photo: picture alliance/dpa/TNN | Markus Gayk
 
In total, police and emergency services were called out to around 50 weather-related incidents in North Rhine-Westphalia on Thursday night. In Hesse, firefighters had to deal with around 70 weather incidents throughout the evening and into the night.


Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Thomas Frey

While residents of Hessen, Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia battled against thunderstorms and gale-force winds, other parts of Germany enjoyed clear skies and summery temperatures. In the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, temperatures hit highs of around 28C on Thursday, while in Berlin and Brandenburg, they peaked at around 27C around midday. 

Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Christoph Schmidt

Will the storms stretch into Friday?

According to the DWD, another bout of stormy weather looks set to strike across western and central Germany on Friday evening, as heavy rain, hail and heavy gusts are expected to hit North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland and parts of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt.

There also looks set to be further floods on the horizon in these areas as DWD expects rainfall of up to 60 litres per square metre, gusts of wind at speeds of 85 kilometres an hour, and potential thunderstorms. 

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WEATHER

Winter weather returns to Germany after spring heat spell

Temperatures in Germany almost hit 30C in the last few weeks. But winter-like weather is well and truly back - and ski slopes are even re-opening in some areas.

Published: 19 April 2024 12:42 CEST
Winter weather returns to Germany after spring heat spell

Many people in Germany will have already packed away their winter clothes as spring has seen high temperatures and lots of sun.

But a cosy hoody and jacket will be needed again.

According to the German Weather Service (DWD), a blast of polar air has been moving in bringing ice, rain and sleet that is turning to snow, particularly at higher altitudes. 

Those who want to take advantage of the winter weather can even get back on the slopes. Many ski resorts had to close early for the season – but a few are reopening. 

On Friday, the ski lift at Kandel in the Emmendingen district (Baden-Württemberg) opens for floodlit skiing from 6pm. to 10pm. If the snow remains, the lifts will also operate at the weekend from 9am to 5pm.

Meanwhile, the lift at Seebuck (Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district) is operating on Saturday from 1pm to 5pm.

‘Aprilschmuddelwetter’

Lower-lying spots have also seen hailstones and snow showers. People in Munich dealt with a flurry of snow on Thursday as temperatures fell. High temperatures ranged from 4C in Oberallgäu to 12C in Lower Franconia.

In a post on X, the DWD described it as Aprilschmuddelwetter – Schmuddelwetter translates to “mucky” or “foul weather” and is often used in Germany in spring when there’s lots of rain.

The DWD said: “April foul weather on Friday: Widespread rain, snow in high mountain areas. In the afternoon, partly heavy sleet showers from the north-west, isolated thunderstorms. In addition, stormy winds in places. Temperatures will barely reach double figures.”

The DWD shared a photo with tulips poking out from the snow in Neuhaus am Rennweg in Thuringia and said it was symbolic of the current weather situation.

The low pressure system moving in from the North Sea was bringing more widespread rain, thunderstorms and hail on Friday. 

In Berlin temperatures hovered around 7C on Friday during the day with continuous rain. It was around 5C in Erfurt and 8C in Kiel. 

In western Germany, it was slightly less cool with temperatures reaching 10C – but torrential rain was forecast. 

Changeable weather with showers was forecast on Saturday, while some sunshine in the north and east of Germany was expected on Sunday. 

At night, there is a risk of frost, ice and freezing rain in the coming days in spots where the temperature drops.

This comes after a series of storms and strong winds lashed the country earlier this week.

READ ALSO: Storms and high winds hit Germany

Just a few days before that, Germany was bathed in sunshine as temperatures climbed up to nearly 30C.

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