MENDIG, Germany, June 4 (UPI) — At least 51 festival goers were injured, eight seriously, after being struck by lightning at the popular Rock am Ring festival in western Germany.
Some reports say over 70 attendees were injured from the strikes.
News of the damaging strike comes after over a week of unruly weather and record-breaking floods throughout much of central Europe, including France, Ukraine and parts of Germany.
Event organizers reportedly confirmed on social media people were seriously injured after lightning struck at the festival, where the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Black Sabbath are headliners. At least two people needed emergency resuscitation after the strikes, BBC reported.
Extreme weather reportedly postponed some of the acts on Friday although a spokeswoman from the festival has dismissed talk of canceling the high-profile event — one of the most famous music fests in Germany.
Last year, at least 33 people were hospitalized after lightning strikes into the crowds of almost 45,000 festival goers.
The new strikes come a week after up to 46 people, many of whom children, were injured in lightning strikes at an outdoor birthday party in France and a children’s sports event in Germany. At least four children in the France incident experienced life-threatening injuries.
This week, up to 16 people have died due to severe weather and flooding in Europe, with 11 of the deaths occurring in Germany. In Paris, the Louvre and Musee d’Orsay have been closed as employees work to protect priceless masterpieces from flood waters.
“Around the Eiffel Tower, the banks are flooded,” French resident Julien Rogard said in response to the 20-foot rise of the Seine River. “Where we usually can walk, we can’t anymore.”
