Heavy heavy rain with 35 liters per square meter, large-grain hail and heavy gusts of wind: The German Weather Service (DWD) warned of a severe thunderstorm in North Rhine-Westphalia from Sunday afternoon. Locally, even extremely heavy rain with 40 to 60 liters per square meter and hurricane-like gusts were not excluded at times, said a DWD meteorologist in Essen.
It was initially clear, sunny and dry until noon – with temperatures of a maximum of 30 degrees in the southwest and in the Sauerland, up to a maximum of 36 degrees in Westphalia. According to preliminary DWD information, it was already up to 35.7 degrees hot on Saturday. This maximum temperature was measured in Tönisvorst (Viersen district).
From the afternoon on, heavy showers and thunderstorms with the potential for thunderstorms moved in from the south-west. The northwest of the country was hardest hit. The Warnwetter app from the German Weather Service also warned of severe thunderstorms for all districts in OWL. Heavy rain of up to 35 liters per square meter in a short time, hurricane gusts and hail were possible.
>>> The weather in Bielefeld
>>> This is the situation in the districts of Herford and Minden-Lübbecke
Many fire brigade operations in NRW
In Moers, North Rhine-Westphalia, the fire brigade deployed 20 times to storm-related operations up to 8 p.m. alone. “In most cases, it was necessary to clear broken branches and fallen trees from streets and sidewalks,” says a statement. The Bocholt fire brigade also reports an increased number of operations and 60 operations since the afternoon, mainly due to fallen trees and full basements. In Bochum, the fire brigade was also on duty because of this. In addition, large amounts of liquid with rainwater from an industrial plant got onto the Autobahn 40 near Westkreuz and flooded it.
In Essen-Holsterhausen, a tree fell on an apartment building. According to the fire brigade, the two residents, an elderly woman and an elderly man, were unable to leave the building on their own and were rescued unharmed by the fire brigade. A structural engineer initially declared the building uninhabitable.
In Kranenburg, in the far west of North Rhine-Westphalia, lightning struck a ten meter high tree and set it on fire. Lightning struck a power pole in Hünxe. According to the local fire brigades, both operations were quickly completed.
On Monday night, the storm finally moved to the northeast. According to the DWD, the situation only calmed down in the morning and there were only a few last showers. At the beginning of the week it stays warm, but the maximum temperatures drop slightly to 25 to 28 degrees.