Paragliders hit by gusts of wind: Two people fall and die in an accident
Created: 05/20/2022, 15:25
By: Patrick Huljina
Two paragliders crashed in Saxony-Anhalt on Thursday.
According to the police, a gust of wind was responsible for the fatal accident.
Ballenstedt - The weather in Germany is currently uncomfortable.
Severe thunderstorms broke out on Thursday.
On Friday (May 20), the German Weather Service (DWD) again warned of "locally very violent thunderstorms".
The risk of storms is increased.
Heavy rain, hail and hurricane gusts have been moving in from the west to Germany since midday.
Even tornadoes are possible.
In the afternoon, according to the DWD, the thunderstorms will move further east, in the evening also in the south of the country.
Saxony-Anhalt: paraglider accident in Ballenstedt
In Saxony-Anhalt there was already a tragic, probably weather-related accident
on Thursday evening
(May 19) .
A 59-year-old man and a 59-year-old woman died when their paraglider crashed.
The police announced on Friday.
The two took off from the Ballenstedt-Asmusstedt airfield on Thursday with a motorized paraglider.
Due to a forecast change in the weather, the pilots from France were asked to land.
As the
Volksstimme
reports, this happened around 7:15 p.m.
An optical warning signal was set by the tower as a guide for the pilots.
In Saxony-Anhalt, two paragliders were hit by a gust of wind and crashed.
(Archive image) © Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa
Paragliders hit by gusts of wind: Two people fall and die in an accident
At this time, thunderstorms and strong gusts of wind were already brewing.
A little later, according to the police, the paraglider was "apparently hit by a gust of wind, so that the paraglider collapsed and the aircraft crashed from a height of around 40 meters in a field next to the landing field".
The two occupants of the paraglider were fatally injured.
The police have started the investigation and secured the motorized paraglider.
According to Volksstimme
, other members of the French tour group who took part in this paramotor meeting were
looked after on site by a crisis intervention team.
(ph with dpa)
