Storm knocks over national Christmas tree
Just before the Bidens are about to officially switch on the lights, the US National Christmas Tree is lying horizontally: The recently planted spruce cannot withstand the strong gusts of wind that are roaring through Washington. A crane saves the day.
Icy winds have the US capital Washington firmly in their grip - and have knocked over the National Christmas Tree. Late Tuesday afternoon (local time), the huge tree was lying on its side, with some lights still on, as can be seen in pictures. A crane was towering over the Christmas tree.
The tree, which is around twelve meters high, stands just a few meters away from the White House - on Thursday, US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill want to officially light up the traditional tree. "As the saying goes: 'The show must go on'", announced the National Park Service (NPS). According to the television station NBC4, the spruce was upright again after around five hours.
In Washington, the wind gusts reached speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour on Tuesday. The illuminated tree stands in Ellipse Park between the White House and the Washington Monument. President Calvin Coolidge lit up a Christmas tree for the first time in 1923. Switching on the lights has been a tradition in Washington for decades. The spruce that has now toppled over was planted just a few weeks ago. Its predecessor had to be felled because it had lost needles due to fungal infestation. A national Christmas tree had already fallen victim to a storm in 2011, but that time it was undecorated in February.
Despite being just weeks old, the extreme weather conditions in Washington, USA, resulted in the international symbol of Christmas, the US National Christmas Tree, being knocked over by strong winds. Fortunately, the incident occurred before the official lighting ceremony scheduled for Thursday with President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden.
Source: www.ntv.de
