Another heat record broken in Germany

The temperature record in Germany has been broken yet again. As the German Weather Service (DWD) has confirmed, 41.7 degrees Celsius were recorded at the Neißemünde-Coschen measuring station in the district of Oder-Spree in Brandenburg on Sunday at 3.10 p.m.

The previous record high had only been set on Saturday in Möckern-Drewitz in Saxony-Anhalt.

According to the German Weather Service, the night leading into Sunday was also the warmest since records began: 29.4 degrees were measured in Kubschütz in Saxony.

If people are not careful, the heat is not only a risk to health but is also causing damage. On several motorways, including parts of the A2, the asphalt buckled. The section of the A2 near Burg (Saxony-Anhalt), which had been closed because of heat damage, has now been reopened to traffic. Other stretches of the motorway in Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt remain closed because of damage to the road surface. Drivers are being asked to avoid the A2.

In Leipzig the asphalt melted directly above the tram tracks.

In view of the heatwave, Caritas president Eva Maria Welskop-Deffaa has called for more churches to be kept open to visitors, including as places where people can cool down. Although many churches are already accessible, this is not enough – "there should once again be more", Welskop-Deffaa told Bild newspaper.

The weather service expects the heatwave weekend to come to an end on Sunday evening as storms move in, with significantly cooler temperatures forecast for Monday. According to the DWD, highs in most regions will then only range between 25 and 29 degrees, while in eastern and south-eastern Germany local temperatures of up to 32 degrees are still possible.