A ‘severe’ heat warning is in place for over two-thirds of the country (in purple on the map below), with only parts of northern Germany around Hamburg, Kiel and Bremen escaping the oppressive temperatures on Sunday. The ‘severe’ warning is issued when the temperature feels more than 32C and there is little overnight relief. The next step, an ‘extreme’ warning, applies if temperatures exceed 38C. The forecaster has also announced storm warnings for some parts of the country (orange on the below map) on Sunday.
Areas around west and central Germany are expected to see strong storms with heavy rain of up to 20 litres per square metre in a short period and strong gusts of wind up to 70km/h on Sunday. READ ALSO: Germany’s official advice for how to stay safe in a heatwave Thunderstorms are forecast to increase in frequency in the afternoon, especially in eastern central Germany, with torrential rain, hailstones up to three centimetres in diameter, and hurricane-force gusts of around 100 km/h, DWD said on
Sunday morning. Looking ahead, experts anticipate that the heatwave will continue for the time being, with temperatures of 32C to 39C expected in central and southern Germany until Wednesday. The severe weather has already had an impact over the weekend: Nine people were injured by lightning during a sports festival in Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, on Saturday. Meanwhile, the severe weather meant that 300 children had to be evacuated from a camp in East Frisia and 5,000 from a festival in Schleswig-Holstein. The high temperatures also caused
damage to roads, including on the A13 in Brandenburg and the A1 in Schleswig-Holstein. Highest alert level in Paris It’s a similar picture across much of Europe. In France, weather service Météo France issued the highest or second-highest alert level for almost the entire country for Sunday – with peak temperatures of between 38C and 41C expected. The highest alert level, red, is in effect for 35 departments, including Paris. In Spain, meanwhile, the national weather service is forecasting temperatures of 40C for large parts
of Andalusia on Sunday. With additional reporting by DPA
Germany, heatwave, severe heat warning, extreme heat warning, storms, heavy rain, hail, wind gusts, DWD, Rastatt, East Frisia, Schleswig-Holstein