Storms and heavy rain flood roads, block railway lines in Germany

BERLIN — Storms and heavy rain across a large swath of Germany flooded roads and forced the closure of some major railway routes on Friday, but there was no immediate word of any injuries.

Germany's national weather service had warned earlier this week of severe storms with significant amounts of rainfall, which hit on Thursday.

In the western city of Duisburg, the fire service said it rescued several people from cars that got stuck on flooded streets. Shops were flooded and streets inundated in the northern city of Braunschweig, and there were similar reports from Kassel. In Hattersheim, near Frankfurt, trees fell on houses and cars, German news agency dpa reported.

Germany's national railway operator, Deutsche Bahn, said that the main line between Hamburg and Berlin was closed because of storm damage, as was a major north-south route between Kassel and Goettingen.