The Swiss voice in the world since 1935

Switzerland hit by more than 70,000 lightning bolts

Lightning
A bolt of lightning over a school in Bern on Tuesday © Keystone / Peter Klaunzer

After a day of record temperatures, powerful thunderstorms passed over Switzerland on Tuesday night, with SRF Meteo reporting more than 70,000 flashes by 5am.

A woman was struck by lightning in Villars-sur-Glâne, western Switzerland, on Tuesday evening and was taken to hospital with serious injuries.

The strongest gale-force winds, of 144 km/h, were measured by MeteoNews on the Uetliberg mountain measuring station outside Zurich.

At Zurich airport, check-ins were paused for an hour on Tuesday for safety reasons. Earlier the temperature in Switzerland exceeded 37°C for the first time this year: in Chur, eastern Switzerland, the mercury hit 37.6°C.

According to MeteoNews, thunderstorms were most frequent around 8pm on Tuesday in Ticino and the Gotthard region, between eastern Lake Geneva and Bern, and over the Jura in the northwestern part of the country.

More

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

A tropical parasite moves from Switzerland to Germany

More

A tropical parasite spreads from Switzerland to Germany

This content was published on A pest from the tropics is giving Swiss agriculture a hard time. The caterpillar of the tomato moth (Helicoverpa armigera) devours almost everything. The moth is now spreading northwards.

Read more: A tropical parasite spreads from Switzerland to Germany
Geneva Lake Parade: over 10,000 people brave the rain

More

Over 10,000 people brave the rain for Geneva Lake Parade

This content was published on The Lake Parade attracted more than 10,000 people to Geneva on Saturday afternoon in torrential rain. This techno and festive event took place in a reduced format and on an unusual reversed route because of the Women's Euro.

Read more: Over 10,000 people brave the rain for Geneva Lake Parade
ZH: new burglary in a gun shop failed

More

Zurich police foils gun shop burglary attempt

This content was published on The Zurich cantonal police today arrested two men in Pfungen, a few kilometres from Winterthur (ZH), who were trying to rob a gun shop. Thefts in such businesses in Switzerland have multiplied recently.

Read more: Zurich police foils gun shop burglary attempt
Planes

More

Airspace congestion jeopardises safety

This content was published on Flight safety is reduced by the clogging of airspace, says Thomas Steffen, a pilot for Swiss and head of safety at Aeropers, the industry association.

Read more: Airspace congestion jeopardises safety
Work by Malaysian artist on display in Thun

More

Malaysian artist Yee I-Lann holds first major European exhibition in Thun

This content was published on Das Kunstmuseum Thun richtet im August die erste grössere Europaausstellung der malaysischen Künstlerin Yee I-Lann aus. Darin werden Einflüsse des Kolonialismus aber auch das Fortbestehen des indigenen Erbes thematisiert.

Read more: Malaysian artist Yee I-Lann holds first major European exhibition in Thun

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR