A tornado left almost 40 injured, “several of them seriously”, and “immense damage” in the German city of Paderborn (west), local emergency services reported Friday. “38 injured, several of them seriously, were taken to the hospital,” the firefighters of this town indicated on their Twitter account. One person “is in danger of death,” local police said.
The phenomenon caused significant material damage in this town in the North Rhine-Westphalia region, hit by the storm that is currently sweeping through the skies of Germany after abnormally high temperatures were recorded.
In the neighboring Rhineland-Palatinate region, a 38-year-old man was killed by an electric shock after entering a storm-flooded basement, Koblenz police said.
The storm caused innumerable damages in the west of Germany, detaching roofs and uprooting trees, indicated the security forces. Photos on social media also showed overturned cars.
A fire brigade spokesman said a tornado was also likely to have broken out in Lippstadt, about 30km from Paderborn, with no injuries reported so far.
The bell tower of the church in this city was ripped off by the violence of the wind, according to photos on social networks.
In Paderborn, the police evaluated the “damage” caused by the storm at “several million” euros, which mobilized up to 350 emergency personnel.
Rail traffic was disrupted and police urged residents to stay indoors.
Meteorological services had issued storm alerts for Friday, with wind gusts of up to 130 km/hour.
The storms, which started in the west, are forecast to move into eastern Germany overnight.
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