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Storms to follow hottest day of the year

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Storms to follow hottest day of the year
Photo: DPA

Germany sweltered under the hottest weather of 2012 so far this weekend, with temperatures approaching 40 degrees Celsius. The heat will remain this week, but storms are also approaching.

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The entire country seemed to flock towards water this weekend, as temperatures climbed on Saturday and rose even further on Sunday, particularly in the south west.

The mercury in Saarbrücken-Burbach and in Kreuzbach climbed to 38.9 degrees, topping the record of 2003 by 0.40 degrees, the German weather service (DWD) said.

“Most people are wondering whether the hot weather will continue,” said a meteorologist from the DWD. And while it will remain warm, she said “Sunday was the tip of the iceberg, so to speak.”

A 49-year-old man died sunbathing near Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. He was only discovered when others noticed he had not moved for a long time.

And the heat made others at a lake nearby short tempered when a mass brawl broke out leaving four people injured, three seriously. Police were called to the Freilinger lake to break up the mostly male group, who had begun by throwing verbal abuse at each other and ended up hurling beer cans, the Kölner Stadt Anzeiger newspaper reported on Sunday.

A mixture of high and low pressure over the coming days will provide “the best conditions for a lively mix: high temperatures and damp air are good for powerful storms,” the DWD meteorologist said.

Click here for The Local's weather forecast

Parts of central Germany could start to see clouds gathering as early as Monday, with a chance of thunder and lightning over the Harz mountains. In the south, people will continue to bake, with temperatures sticking between 33 and 37 degrees Celsius.

By nighttime, the chance of thunder storms may well have spread to the south western, as well as central states said the DWD, but temperatures will remain as high as 22 degrees overnight in some areas.

Tuesday should be sunny in most places also, but with patches of cloud here and there. The humidity levels are set to rocket, meaning that although temperatures probably are not expected to exceed 29 degrees, it may well feel a lot hotter. It will be coolest in northern Germany, where there should be the lowest chance of storms.

Rain will begin to fall on Tuesday night, pushing temperatures down to lows of between 21 and 14.

Low pressure should settle over the previously very hot and dry southern states, bringing the threat of violent thunderstorms, said the DWD. Elsewhere across the country, the weather is set to be changeable with the odd shower and patchy sunshine.

Thursday should, for the south at least, be another hot one as temperatures are forecast to climb back up over 30 degrees Celsius. This does mean, according to the DWD, a high chance of rain, though.

Whether the coming weekend will be as hot as the last is yet to be forecast.

The Local/jcw

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