Rain in Germany causes flooding, leads to flight cancellations in Frankfurt

Heavy rain in parts of Germany caused flooding and led to dozens of flight cancellations at Frankfurt Airport, the country's busiest and a major European hub, authorities said Thursday.

The airport said large quantities of water accumulated on the tarmac Wednesday evening and ground handling was suspended for more than two hours, German news agency dpa reported.

The airport website showed about 70 flights were cancelled by 11 pm, when flying is ordinarily halted for the night, while 23 flights headed for Frankfurt were diverted to other airports.

Downpours in parts of southwestern and central Germany led to flooded basements and streets. In Gelsenkirchen, in the western Ruhr district, the fire service said people were rescued from their cars where several highway underpasses were under water.