Today's official European outlook
Europe has no single government tornado map, but two authoritative continent-wide sources are updated daily and freely available. Use these as your live starting point:
National services carry the official warnings for your country â the UK Met Office, Germany's DWD, and MÊtÊo-France among them.
Does Europe get tornadoes?
Yes â far more than most people realise. Europe records on the order of several hundred tornadoes a year, including waterspouts, though the great majority are weak and short-lived compared with the violent tornadoes of the US Plains. They form the same way: thunderstorms with enough instability and wind shear, most often in spring and summer, and in autumn along the Mediterranean coasts.
Where tornadoes strike in Europe
| Region | Notes |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom & Ireland | Among the highest tornado frequency per unit area in the world, though nearly all are weak. TORRO tracks them. |
| Central Europe (Germany, Poland, Czechia) | Summer supercells can produce strong tornadoes; the 2021 Czech EF4 was among Europe's most destructive. |
| France & the Low Countries | Regular weak-to-moderate tornadoes, plus occasional stronger events in the north. |
| Italy & the Mediterranean | Frequent waterspouts and autumn coastal tornadoes, especially around the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian seas. |
Read more on our tornadoes in Europe page and the worldwide tornado guide.
Staying safe
Follow your national weather service and Meteoalarm during the storm season, and treat a severe-thunderstorm or tornado warning seriously: move indoors to a sturdy building, away from windows, on the lowest floor. See our tornado safety guide.