In the early evening hours of 9 August 2019, a tornado wreaked havoc in the south of Luxembourg.
The municipalities of Pétange, Rodange, Linger, and Bascharage were all hit by the storm working its way up to Luxembourg from France three years ago. Wind speeds of 180 to 250 kilometres per hour were measured at the time.
Although crossing a 14-kilometre-long distance, the tornado did not cause any casualties. However, 19 people suffered injuries and material damage surpassed €100 million. 180 buildings were damaged and about 100 people had to leave their homes to find emergency shelter.
2019 was not the first time that Luxembourg was hit by a major tornado. A similar event also happened on 3 June 1999 in Wiltz. Back then, residents of Rue Aneschbaach found themselves surprised by a storm, which severely damaged a number of houses and a nearby camp site.
Nine years earlier, another tornado hit the north of the country. In Schlindermanderscheid, a storm damaged several family homes and farms, with about 100 trees also being ripped from the ground. Fortunately, nobody was injured.
