Severe weather warnings, multiple lightning strikes and flooding – the night was so stormy

The weather in Switzerland has been summery and hot since the beginning of the week – even on Sunday the temperatures in many places are approaching or even breaking the 30-degree mark.

During the course of the afternoon, thunderstorms in various regions will put an abrupt end to the summer mood: from around 3 p.m., the first thunderstorm cells will reach western Switzerland and the Glarus region, rapidly increasing in intensity.

At around 6 p.m., partly heavy rainfall with thunderstorms is expected over Central Switzerland, Basel-Stadt and Schaffhausen, with more than 60 millimeters of rainfall per hour expected in some places.

Anyone hoping for an evening of outdoor barbecues will be disappointed: Heavy thunderstorms are expected throughout Switzerland later in the evening, but especially in the Emmental and the regions of Lucerne, Aargau and Zurich. The federal government is warning of possible danger from thunderstorms in all areas except Ticino and Graubünden.

The weather should not calm down significantly until late in the evening, at least in German-speaking Switzerland. In western Switzerland, individual cells may continue to cause heavy rainfall.

The rainy Sunday evening is a harbinger of what’s to come in the week ahead: while it will remain hot on Monday and Tuesday, it will cool down considerably on Wednesday with more rain. But summer is not over yet, temperatures will still be between 18 and 23 degrees.