Extreme weather events occurred yesterday in western Germany resulting in the death of one person and the injury of about 40, ten of them seriously, when a tornado hit several towns, police and local media said.
Images on social media show what appears to be a tornado with its characteristic twists and turns, with various debris floating in the air although the German Meteorological Office did not immediately confirm that it was indeed a tornado.
The 38-year-old man in the western town of Wittgert has succumbed to head injuries suffered from a fall after being electrocuted in a flooded cellar, local media quoting police said.
Police said up to 40 people were injured in Paderborn, a town of about 150,000 people between Frankfurt and Hamburg. Rail and road transport was affected across the region.
In nearby Helingen, images posted on social media show a bell tower has fallen from the tower of a church, with its remains strewn across the churchyard.
Police posted images showing trees have fallen or been cut in two, as well as roofs swept away by the winds in Paderborn.
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"About 40 people were injured in the storm, at least 10 of them seriously," municipal police said in a statement. It added that metal and other materials were carried miles away by the winds, countless roofs were torn off or damaged and many trees remained on damaged cars.
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They asked residents to stay in their homes. The German weather service warned that the extreme weather was expected to continue.
Meteorologists said the extreme weather was caused by warm air masses brought in from Africa combined with relatively colder air moving south from northern Europe.
Source: CNA
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