Germany braces for heatwave with highs of 36C

The first summer heatwave is heading to Germany. The German Weather Service (DWD) has forecast temperatures between 25 and 36 degrees celcius, and tropical nights in some cities.

Heatwave heading to Germany

There have been some exceptional days, but this year’s transition from spring to summer in Germany has so far been a cool and damp affair. On June 17, the summer weather is expected to arrive with full force.

According to the DWD, from Wednesday afternoon, the southern and western parts of the country will see temperatures in the high twenties. 29 degrees is forecast in Konstanz, Stuttgart, and Frankfurt; 27 degrees in Munich and Nuremberg; and 26 degrees in Cologne. Berlin, Hanover and Bremen will see a milder 23 degrees.

By Thursday, the weather will have warmed up in the northern and eastern federal states, too. Leipzig will see 30 degrees; Dresden and Hanover, 29 degrees; Berlin and Bremen, 28 degrees. Down south, temperatures in most cities will hit 33 degrees. Highs of 36 degrees are forecast in the Oberrhein (Upper Rhine) region. 

On Thursday, cities in the southern and western parts of the country will also experience a “tropical night”, meaning temperatures will not drop below 20 degrees throughout the night into Friday.

Stormy weather forecast for Tuesday

Before the heat hits, however, many regions will experience stormy weather on Tuesday. According to the DWD, moist air arriving from the west will bring very heavy, intermittent rainfall. Hailstones and wind squalls are also possible.

“Locally, particularly in the afternoon and evening, severe thunderstorms with heavy downpours of up to 30 litres per square metre cannot be ruled out over central areas and parts of the east,” DWD meteorologist Jacqueline Kernn explained, as reported by DIE ZEIT.