June 24, 5:20 a.m
On Thursday evening and on Friday night, thunderstorms, some strong, swept over Switzerland from the west. In some areas there was heavy hail, squalls and large amounts of rain in a short period of time.
Several thunderstorm cells passed over the canton of Bern later on Thursday afternoon and early evening. According to SRF Meteo, a super cell built up around 5 p.m. northwest of Thun.
Hail fell in some places. Large hailstones were observed in the Gruzelen, Seleute and Wattenwil region in particular. Around 8 p.m. the weather situation in Bern calmed down. News scouts reported to the media about power outages in the Bernese Oberland and in the canton of Solothurn and occasionally in the canton of Bern.
In parts of Switzerland there were strong gusts of wind, for example in Koppigen BE at 119 kilometers per hour, in Freiburg (84 km/h) or in Mathod VD (83 km/h). The gusts, some of which reached hurricane strength, were accompanied by heavy rain. 62 millimeters of rain fell in Koppigen. That is almost 60 percent of the June norm. More than 60 millimeters of rain were also measured in Locarno TI.
The strong gusts also affected take-offs and landings at Zurich Airport. There are considerable delays, as a look at the arrivals and departures on the tableau on the Internet shows. The “Blick” had first reported on the restricted flight operations.
According to SRF Meteo, the thunderstorm line has now reached Lake Constance. Strong gusts are still possible in the Alpstein area and in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley.