PARIS — Eight children and three adults were struck by lightning Saturday in a Paris park after a sudden spring storm sent a bolt crashing down on a children’s birthday party, fire officials said.
Six of the victims, including three children and three adults, were seriously injured, the officials said. The others were only slightly hurt.
Dr. Pierre Carli, an emergency room doctor, said one of the children was put on life support but the other children were out of immediate danger and under observation.
A spokesman for the Paris fire service said an off-duty firefighter played a crucial role in getting medical help to the victims.
Another group of people at a children’s soccer match in western Germany were also hit by lightning Saturday afternoon, leaving three adults seriously injured.
The birthday group had sought shelter under a tree at Park Monceau, a northwest Paris park popular with well-to-do families, when a lightning bolt touched down, according to Erin Moulin, the fire service spokesman.
He said Commander Pascal Gremillet, an off-duty firefighter, was visiting a museum nearby when he noticed the commotion and discovered nine of the 11 victims lying unconscious on the ground under the tree. He immediately went to work.
‘‘He saw who was the most seriously injured. He did a quick triage of the victims. He did first aid. He alerted the rescue services,’’ Moulin said. ‘‘Without his actions, it would have been much worse.’’
Footage shot by the fire service showed a dramatic scene at a nearby bank that was commandeered as a treatment center, with children wrapped in gold thermal blankets sitting and lying on the building’s tiled floor as firefighters administered first aid before taking the victims to hospitals.
Moulin said the children were all about 9 years old.
A pair of children’s glasses and a jacket were abandoned near the tree that was struck. White-and-red tape was strung around the area and park wardens ushered weekend joggers out of the park, which was swiftly closed.
‘‘This accident is extremely rare in the Paris region,’’ Carli said at a press conference after the accident.
One Paris resident who lives near the park and saw the lightning strike said it was rare to see such a wild storm hitting the French capital.
‘‘It was dramatic,’’ said resident Jean-Louis Laurens.
Storms had violent consequences elsewhere in Europe.
Police in Germany said 35 people were taken to the hospital after lightning struck a children’s soccer match Saturday afternoon in western Germany. Three adults were seriously injured in the strike in Hoppstaetten, including the referee.
Another 32 people, among them 30 children ranging in age from 9 to 11, were taken to the hospital as a precaution.
