A 58-year-old woman has died and others have been injured as devastating storms continue to batter Germany. The incident occurred in Waldorf, in the south-western state of Rhineland-Palatinate, when a woman was struck by a falling tree, German news agency dpa reported on Thursday.
Police confirmed that another woman suffered serious injuries in the accident. The women, aged 58 and 47, were walking together when they got caught in the storm. Seeking shelter under a covered seating area, both women were struck when a tree was uprooted and fell onto the seating area. The 58-year-old died at the scene, a police spokesperson said. The 47-year-old was taken to hospital.
Tornado and structural damage
Meanwhile, a tornado struck the town of Furstenwalde, located 49 miles south-east of Berlin. Several cars were damaged by falling trees, roofs were torn off of homes and one person was injured. According to DPA, a storm also tore walls from buildings in Hohr-Grenzhausen in the Westerwald district in western Germany. At least two homes were affected in this area. On top of this, a widespread power outage also hit the area, while strong gusts of wind overturned a truck on the A61 road.
Numerous weather-related emergency calls were made overnight in Hesse, Thuringia and Bavaria. The storms were so bad that a village festival in Kronach, Bavaria, was partially evacuated due to the severe conditions. Local police said 3,500 guests had to leave the outdoor area of the festival grounds late on Wednesday evening (August 19).
Damage and further warnings
In Wetzlar, in Hesse, the storm damaged about 60 houses, according to the area’s fire department. It’s been reported that pieces of roofing were blown as far as 100 metres away. The German Weather Service warned that further severe storms could occur later in the day, particularly in Baden-Wurttemberg and Bavaria in southern Germany.
Following months of summer sun, the bad weather is also coming to the UK this weekend. The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms for Greater Manchester region from 7pm on Wednesday evening (August 19). The forecaster warned heavy showers and storms are likely to 'lead to some travel disruption and flash flooding'. The warning was due to end at 10am today but has now been extended until 1pm this afternoon. It covers all of Greater Manchester as well as parts of the North West, Derbyshire, the North East of England, Wales and Yorkshire and Humber. According to the Met Office, heavy showers are forecast in our area until around 1pm. Lighter showers are forecast for this afternoon amid cloudy and sunny spells.
