At least one dead and "numerous injuries" by a storm in Switzerland

At least one person has died from a storm that is affecting the northern Swiss canton of Neuchatel, bordering France. It also caused “numerous injuries”, according to the local police in La Chaux-de-Fonds, one of the main cities affected.

The deceased was hit by a crane knocked down by the strong winds of the storm, which affected the city and other surrounding areas around 11:30 a.m. local time (9:30 GMT). The cantonal police also reported “considerable” material damage to vehicles, roofs and urban furniture in other areas of the city and the canton.

The strong gusts of wind also caused the fall of several trees on the train tracks that have forced the cut of the connections between La Chaux-de-Fonds and the stations of La Ferrière, St-Imier, Les Hauts-Geneveys and Le Locle, as reported by the Swiss railway company CFF on its social networks.

The company assured that they are already creating alternative bus lines to cover some of these routes, after the national meteorological agency MétéoSuisse reported wind gusts of up to 217 km/h.