A cyclist was killed by a falling tree in Karlsruhe on Thursday evening as severe storms swept across Baden-Württemberg, leaving one dead and multiple injured, after earlier forecasts warned of heavy thunderstorms moving in from France.
Hundreds of emergency responders mobilized across the state, with Karlsruhe authorities reporting more than 250 weather-related callouts between evening and overnight hours, including flooded streets and damaged traffic infrastructure. A series of six aquaplaning accidents on the A8 motorway near Günzburg left one person seriously injured. The storms also damaged a commercial aircraft that encountered hail before landing at Stuttgart airport, and a super cell storm system produced hailstones up to five centimetres wide.
The Deutscher Wetterdienst warned of renewed severe thunderstorms with heavy rainfall exceeding 25 litres per square metre from Friday afternoon into Saturday.