Europe weather: 5 dead, including 2 girls, in Austria storms

BERLIN (AP) — Authorities in Austria say five people including two children have died in heavy storms that hit the Alpine country. Two girls ages 4 and 8 were killed when sudden strong winds late Thursday toppled trees at a lake in Lavant Valley near the southern city of Graz. Officials said 13 people were injured. Two of them had serious injuries. Many of the victims were vacationers visiting the popular tourist region. Austrian President Alexander Van Der Bellen called the children’s deaths “an unfathomable tragedy.” The mayor of the nearby town of Wolfsberg said the area looked “like a battlefield.” In Lower Austria three women were killed when lightning struck a tree that then fell over near the central town of Gaming.