With maximum daily temperatures of 36.2 degrees each, Bernburg an der Saale in Saxony-Anhalt and Waghäusel-Kirrlach in Baden-Württemberg were the hottest places in Germany on Friday. Third place went to Saxony-Anhalt: In Seehausen in the Altmark, 35.8 degrees were measured at the top, as it was called in the evening at the German Weather Service (DWD) in Offenbach. Overall, it was the warmest in northeast Germany, and values ​​close to 36 degrees were measured at several stations in the region. It should also be hot at the weekend - but thunderstorms can also sweep across the country.

In Brandenburg, according to the Ministry of the Environment, there was a very high risk of forest fires in all districts on Friday.

Local thunderstorms, some with a risk of storms and heavy rain, could provide some relief on Saturday.

However, according to the DWD, the drought and the risk of forest fires remain.

Several swimming accidents

At the same time, the heat lured people to the water, which led to several swimming accidents on Friday.

According to police in Baden-Württemberg, a man went down in Karlssee on the former site of the Federal Horticultural Show (Buga).

The 22-year-old was rescued and reanimated by divers from the fire brigade, but then died in hospital.

A 20-year-old man also drowned in the Achterdieksee in Bremen.

As the German Life Rescue Society (DLRG) announced, the 20-year-old man was discovered by a lifeguard around 30 meters from the shore at a depth of 4 to 5 meters after bathers had drawn attention to the accident.

The resuscitation attempt by an emergency doctor who had arrived in the meantime failed.

According to the police, a young man was swept away by the current of the Elbe on Friday evening in Hamburg and has been missing since then.

At first a witness tried to help the boy, but he too drowned in the water and was finally rescued by a police officer.

However, the 17-year-old could not be found by the arriving police.

The missing person is now being searched for with the help of divers and drones.

The water rescue service in Bavaria also warns before the heat weekend to be careful when bathing in lakes, rivers and outdoor pools.

The sad occasion: At temperatures around 30 degrees, swimming accidents in Bavarian waters have recently claimed three lives.

Two women and a man died on Thursday in waters in Nuremberg, near Munich and in the Upper Franconian district of Hof, as the police announced.

Heavy storms in the southwest

But not only during the day but also at night there were numerous police operations due to the weather. The police in Hamburg broke up a party of around 4,000 people in the city park on Saturday night. Due to the non-compliance with the applicable corona rules, the police initially tried to use headlights to get the group to leave, said a police spokesman. However, since this did not succeed and groups of 100-200 people were repeatedly formed, the police decided to evacuate the area. Occasionally, bottles were thrown at the police officers.

In the southwest of Germany, however, there were strong storms at night, which meant that the A8 near Pforzheim (Baden-Württemberg) had to be closed.

Heavy rain flooded the road between the junctions Pforzheim-West and Karlsbad.

In the direction of Karlsruhe, ten cars and two trucks were trapped by the water over a distance of about 200 meters.

Some of the 27 people affected were able to get themselves to safety on Saturday night.

Firefighters then rescued them with rubber boots, waders and a rubber dinghy.

About five cars were affected in the direction of Stuttgart.

Nobody got hurt.

Thunderstorm on the weekend

The storms also caused numerous fire service missions off the autobahn.

Communities in the Karlsruhe and Enz districts were affected.

Numerous cellars overflowed, fallen branches and fallen trees blocked roads.

The fire brigade also extinguished a tree that had caught fire due to a lightning strike.

The risk of thunderstorms in the southwest should continue to increase over the weekend.

According to the German Weather Service (DWD), there are only a few thunderstorms on Saturday.

With heavy rain and hail, however, these can already turn out to be stormy.

The maximum temperatures are between 29 degrees in the mountains and 34 degrees on the Tauber.

According to meteorologists, the risk of forest fires also remains high. 

In the night of Sunday it is said to have increased thunderstorms. In a short time, up to 40 liters of rain per square meter can fall, as it was said. Larger hail and heavy squalls are also possible. Even during the day, especially in the afternoon and evening, there should be thunderstorms with heavy rain, according to the DWD. The temperatures are between 25 degrees in the Swabian Alb and 31 degrees in the Hohenlohe.