German weather service says storm generated 3 tornadoes

A storm that swept across parts of Germany generated three tornadoes, the country's weather service said Saturday. One of them left a trail of destruction and more than 40 people injured in a western city.
Meteorologists had warned of heavy rainfall, hail and strong gusts of wind in western and central Germany on Friday, and people in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia were advised to stay home. Storms on Thursday had already disrupted traffic, uprooted trees that toppled onto rail tracks and roads, and flooded hundreds of basements in western Germany.
The German Weather Service confirmed three tornadoes in North Rhine-Westphalia -- in Paderborn, in nearby Lippstadt, and on the edge of the town of Hoexter, news agency dpa reported.
Forty-three people were injured in Paderborn as the tornado tore across the city's downtown area on Friday afternoon, 13 of them seriously, Mayor Michael Dreier said.
Trees in a park and stop lights "snapped like matches," roofs were ripped off buildings and windows smashed, he told reporters on Saturday, and the storm left a roughly 300 metre (yard) -wide trail of destruction. A tree hit the windshield of a fire truck, but the occupants weren't hurt.
Police urged people to stay home or stay out of the city on Saturday so as not to get in the way of recovery work. They said they still expected possible risks from high wind.
Further south, authorities in Bavaria said 14 people were injured Friday when the wooden hut they were trying to shelter in collapsed during a storm at Lake Brombach, south of Nuremberg.
Elsewhere in Europe, Spain was sweltering Saturday under unusually high temperatures for late spring, with a mass of hot, dry air carrying dust from North Africa.
The mercury rose to 42.3 degrees Celsius (108 Fahrenheit) on Friday afternoon in Andujar, in the southern Andalucia region, after reaching 39.5 degrees Thursday. Two of the region's provincial capitals, Cordoba and Sevilla, also saw similar temperatures.
At least 13 regions were on alert Saturday due to heat, Spain's State Meteorological Agency AEMET said, and the temperatures could provoke storms in five of them. The "unusual and extreme" temperatures are expected to peak Saturday.
RISKIN REPORTS
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
2 suspects killed, 6 police officers injured in shooting at bank in Saanich, B.C.
Six police officers are in hospital with gunshot wounds and two suspects have been killed following a shooting at a bank in Saanich, B.C., on Tuesday.

'I just pray that they are going to be fine': Witnesses recall violent shooting at B.C. bank
Witnesses recount what they saw after police officers engaged in a shooting with armed suspects at a bank in Saanich, B.C., on Tuesday morning. Two suspects are dead and six officers are in hospital with gunshot wounds.
B.C. Premier Horgan announces he will step down
After five years in the role, John Horgan announced on Tuesday afternoon he plans to step down as premier of British Columbia and has asked his governing party, the NDP, to hold a leadership convention later this year.
Canadians who want a Nexus card will have to travel to U.S. to get it
A Nexus card is supposed to help put low-risk Canadians on the fast track when crossing the U.S. border, but at least 330,000 Canadians aren’t sure when their applications will be processed.
Ukraine's president says Putin has become 'a terrorist'
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia on Tuesday of becoming 'a terrorist' state carrying out 'daily terrorist acts' and urged Russia's expulsion from the United Nations.
Trump told officials to 'let my people in' and march to Capitol on Jan. 6, former aide testifies
Donald Trump rebuffed his own security's warnings about armed protesters in the Jan. 6 rally crowd and made desperate attempts to join his supporters as they marched to the Capitol, according to dramatic new testimony Tuesday before the House committee investigating the 2021 insurrection.
Airbnb party ban now permanent after pilot saw gatherings in Canada nearly halved
Airbnb has codified a global policy that prohibits guests from hosting parties or events on all listed properties.
Barrie, Ont., man sentenced for masterminding landmark Ponzi scheme
The mastermind of an elaborate Ponzi scheme that cheated hundreds of people of tens of millions of dollars was sentenced Tuesday in a Barrie, Ont., courtroom. Charles Debono has been behind bars since his arrest in 2020 for his role in one of the largest Ponzi schemes in Canadian history.
RCMP official: Lucki claimed direct pressure from federal minister to name guns
A scathing letter from an RCMP communications manager released Tuesday says RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki referred to direct pressure from the federal public safety minister to release firearm details in the days after the Nova Scotia mass shooting.