Overview

• Deutscher Wetterdienst has placed western, central and northeastern regions under severe weather alerts, citing heavy rain, hail and storm-force winds through Ascension Day and beyond.
• A lightning strike in Grevesmühlen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, injured seven people on Wednesday, underscoring the hazards of the active storm front.
• Friday’s rain is slated to give way to sunshine and a rapid warm-up, with southern areas seeing highs of 31–32 °C and the potential for the season’s first heatwave.
• Meteorologists warn that warm, humid air colliding with an unstable jet stream may trigger severe thunderstorms, large hail and isolated tornadoes on Saturday and Sunday.
• Conditions will vary by region: the north and east face persistent downpours and gusts, while the south and west alternate between sunny intervals and storm cells amid Europe-wide temperature extremes.