German authorities have ordered the suspension of the sell-out Rock am Ring music festival on its third and final day after lightning hurt at least 80 fans.
Planned for June 3 – 5, Rock am Ring 2016 featured the likes of Panic! At The Disco, Bring Me The Horizon, the 1975, Of Mice & Men, Architects, August Burns Red, Bullet For My Valentine, Disturbed and Deftones.
Lightning struck Friday night (June 3) at the festival grounds, which is an old airfield in western Germany.
Performances were suspended on June 4 during continued thunderstorms, forcing many of the 92,000 fans at the open-air event to shelter in cars and tents.
Festival organizers were forced to cancel it after local authorities revoked its license early on Sunday morning, June 5.
They said on Facebook: “Dear Fans, because of inclement weather we fear further lightning with the potential risk of injuries. Due to instructions of the Mendig authorities we were ordered to suspend the festival for the moment being. Please stay in your tents or for your own protection go to your cars. We will inform you hourly of any new development.”
Critics on Facebook have accused organizers of not cancelling the event quickly enough.
Fans at Rock am Ring – held at the airport in the town of Mendig, about 62 miles west of Frankfurt – were told to clear the festival grounds by noon on Sunday.
At least eight people were seriously injured by the lightning strike early on Saturday morning.
Central Europe has been hit by severe storms and rain over the past few weeks, leading to 11 deaths in Germany.
Apparently, Germany, France and Belgium have recently been hit with severe storms and flooding.
However, 2016 is not the first year this has happened: 33 fans were injured after lightning struck Rock am Ring 2015.
The festival website has repeatedly warned fans of the possibility of strong rainfall and thunderstorms.
The organizers of Rock am Ring, now in its 31st year, initially said on June 4 that this year’s event would continue. It was due to have finished on June 5.
Lightning struck on crowded Venice Beach in Los Angeles, California, killing one man and injuring several people.
The lightning struck amid a rare summer thunderstorm, spreading panic among bathers and visitors.
Lifeguards fanned out across the beach and the water to attend to the injured, many of whom were treated at the scene.
Elsewhere in California, emergency crews are battling to contain wildfires that are threatening hundreds of homes.
At least 14 homes have reportedly been destroyed in the fires, which have blazed across drought-stricken grassland and forest.
Lightning struck on crowded Venice Beach in Los Angeles, killing one man and injuring several people
A fire in the Sacramento region has spread to cover an area of about 4,000 acres, while another blaze has been threatening homes around Yosemite National Park.
The man killed at Venice Beach is said to have been 20 years old. The exact cause of his death is not yet known, and it is unclear if he was struck directly.
Witnesses say the sky darkened suddenly and screams filled the air as the storm hit the beach on Sunday afternoon. Eight people were admitted to hospital.
One of the injured is said to be in a critical condition. Several people received treatment for milder symptoms, including anxiety.
Stuart Acher told KABC-TV he was hit by lightning while playing volleyball.
“All of a sudden there was a big flash of light and a boom, and it felt like someone punched me in the back of my head,” he told the station.
“It went down the whole side of my right body, and my calves sort of locked up, and I fell over. And I looked up and everybody else was, you know, falling over.”
Lightning also hit Catalina Island, near Los Angeles.
A 57-year-old man who was playing golf was injured in the strike. His condition is said to be stable.
Until the latest strike, at least 15 people had been killed this year by lightning in the US, according to the National Weather Service.
An electrical storm in the UK caused this year’s Glastonbury festival to be shut down temporarily on safety grounds.
Pop star Lily Allen stepped onto the main Pyramid Stage at 19:00 BST, 30 minutes later than planned.
Dance collective Rudimental had their set cut short as the storm approached.
Rudimental had just two songs left to play when the technical crew were seen running on stage and guiding group members out.
Rudimental had just two songs left to play at the Glastonbury when the technical crew were seen running on stage and guiding group members out (photo Getty Images)
The crowd started to boo, unaware of the situation until another stage manager explained an electric storm meant it was not safe to continue.
The band were allowed to return to the stage to take a bow, but the electricity had been cut and they missed the last two songs from their set list, including the number one single Feel The Love.
A message on the large screens either side of the Pyramid Stage had read: “Thank you for your patience, we apologize for the inconvenience.
“In the interests of safety it was necessary to temporarily stop the show. Live music will return to the stage shortly.”
By 18:30 BST, the rain had eased off and the sky on the horizon had cleared.
Glastonbury organizers tweeted: “All stages are up and running after the short delay. Some set times are being adjusted slightly.”
Finally, power has been restored to the stages at Glastonbury.
Three people have been killed and more than 20 injured following a lightning strike on Villa Gesell beach, Argentina.
Reports from Villa Gesell, south-east of the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires, say the victims had been sheltering from a storm on the beach when the lightning struck.
Eyewitnesses spoke of a “terrible noise” and said some people were thrown in the air by the powerful bolt.
Lightning strike killed three people on Villa Gesell beach in Argentina
Many of the injured have suffered burns, two of them seriously.
“Most are out of danger, but there are two adult women in intensive care,” said Juan Chamorro, the head of a local hospital.
Those who died were aged 17, 19 and 21.
The beach town of Villa Gesell is located about 200 miles from Buenos Aires.
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