Disruption and damage in the Belgian coastal resorts on Saturday afternoon
in the severe thunderstorm that moved in from the North Sea - hailstones
up to 5 cm diameter were reported.

Beach huts, tents and hoardings were blown over. In Zeebrugge a marquee
associated with the sand sculpture festival was blown down and several
people were hurt. A number of boats got into difficulties and the
coastguard received numerous calls for help.

Near Tongeren in Belgian Limburg an angler was killed by a falling tree
branch brought down either by a squall or a lightning strike.

In the Netherlands the storms caused a number of road accidents and
disruption to train services.

In Horst in Dutch Limburg at least one person was hurt when part of the roof
of a shop in the Centerparks holiday centre collapsed. In Amsterdam many
houseboats were hit by falling tree branches and the city fire brigade
received some 120 calls to deal with storm damage. Flights in and out of
Schiphol Airport were suspended for half an hour. In Eijsden near
Maastricht 14 people were hurt when a marquee collapsed.

Sources - Belgian and Dutch TV teletext.

Colin Youngs
Brussels