Lothar (storm)
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Lothar is the name of a low-pressure system that resulted in a violent extratropical cyclone sweeping across Central Europe on December 26, 1999, causing major damage in France, southern Germany, and Switzerland. Wind speeds reached around 150 km/h in lower areas and more than 250 km/h on some mountains. Besides buildings and infrastructure, forests, such as the Black Forest in Germany, suffered major damage resulting in substantial economic loss. In the aftermath, the German Weather Service (Deutscher Wetterdienst) was also criticised for not issuing a storm warning for Lothar in contrast to the weather services of other countries and private German services, apparently due to a software bug.[1]