Sirens across the country

Severe weather chaos: Lightning struck a castle, mountain evacuated

Severe thunderstorms, heavy rain, and gusty winds led to hundreds of emergency calls across Austria on Sunday.(Bild: Krone-Collage/Schöffmann, FF Altmünster, FF Aigen im Ennstal)

Storms, heavy rain, and lightning strikes brought large parts of Austria to a standstill on Sunday. A severe thunderstorm front moved into the country from Germany, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. Fire departments, water rescue teams, and emergency responders were on continuous duty. In Upper Austria alone, around 1,000 emergency calls were recorded.

From Upper Austria to Burgenland, the storm front caused dramatic scenes. Hurricane-force gusts of up to 115 km/h were recorded in Enns. Fallen trees blocked roads, cars were struck, trains had to stop, and people even had to be rescued from bodies of water.

Lightning struck the castle tower
One particularly dramatic incident occurred in Dobersberg, Lower Austria. Around 4 p.m., lightning struck the castle tower and set it on fire. Several fire departments arrived with aerial ladders, and fire crews combed through the historic walls in search of smoldering embers. After an hour and a half, the all-clear was finally given.

(Bild: BFK Waidhofen / R. Leyrer-Schlosser)

In Lower Austria, around 140 fire department operations were recorded. The Waldviertel and Mostviertel regions were particularly affected. On the B5 near Pfaffenschlag, a tree crashed onto a woman’s car. Fortunately, the woman was only slightly injured.

Severe thunderstorms, heavy rain, and gusts of wind led to hundreds of emergency calls across Austria on Sunday.(Bild: Krone-Collage/Schöffmann, FF Altmünster, FF Aigen im Ennstal)

Hundreds of emergency calls within minutes
Sunday afternoon was particularly chaotic in Ernsthofen in the Amstetten district. As the thunderstorm front swept across the region, hundreds of emergency calls were received within just 20 minutes. Around 50 fire department calls had to be handled simultaneously.

(Bild: FF Pfaffenschlag)

Several people had to be rescued from bodies of water. In the Scheibbs district, the enormous amounts of rain even triggered a mudslide. In St. Valentin, a tree fell onto a railway overhead line, causing a fire and bringing a train to a halt.

Woman Hit on the Head by a Branch
Tyrol was not spared either. In Kitzbühel , a 68-year-old woman was struck on the head by a falling branch during a brief but violent storm. Despite her injury, she was still able to call 911 herself. Paramedics transported her to St. Johann in Tirol Hospital with a laceration.

In Styria, heavy rain and strong gusts of wind also led to numerous emergency responses. The district of Leoben was particularly affected. At the Wilder Berg Mautern, a total of 387 visitors had to be brought to safety. Knittelfeld was also hit again by storms and heavy rain following the previous day’s severe weather.

Water rescue teams in constant action
Dramatic scenes also unfolded on Salzburg’s lakes. Boats had to be recovered from Lake Wallersee, Lake Mattsee, Lake Wolfgangsee, and Lake Mondsee. A sailboat partially sank in Lake Fuschlsee. At times, several water sports enthusiasts were even reported missing. However, they were found safe and sound after the thunderstorm.

(Bild: APA/WASSERRETTUNG LV SALZBURG)

In Vorarlberg, a lightning strike caused a major power outage. Around 590 households in Gaißau and parts of Höchst were temporarily without power.

Meteorologist Nikolas Zimmermann points out a notable trend: Following the extremely lightning-poor year of 2025, this past May marked a strong comeback for the thunderstorm season. Around 150,000 lightning strikes were recorded across Austria—about 20 percent more than the average over the past 15 years.

Weather calms down – but only briefly
Following Sunday’s severe storms, the weather situation eases at the start of the week, at least temporarily. Monday begins with thick clouds and rain across much of Austria. The sun will be a rare sight at first. However, the skies will gradually clear up as the day progresses, especially in the west and south of the country. It won’t stay completely dry, though: rain showers are still possible from time to time. Temperatures will reach 18 to 25 degrees.

In the evening, the last showers will quickly subside. Overnight into Tuesday, the skies will clear in many places, and in some regions it will even be starry. The wind will die down significantly, and temperatures will drop to 4 to 14 degrees. 

Tuesday will bring significantly nicer weather, especially in the eastern half of Austria. There, sunshine will mostly prevail until the evening, before high stratus clouds move in. Rain showers will remain the exception. The situation will be different in the west: there, a new weather front will move in during the day, bringing dense clouds, rain showers, and isolated thunderstorms once again. Early morning temperatures will range between 7 and 15 degrees, and it will become significantly warmer again during the day, with highs of 18 to 28 degrees.