Severe storms that hit most of France on Saturday killed one person, injured 15 and left 15,000 homes without power, officials said on Sunday.
“In Rouen, 15 injured and one person killed, two seriously,” said Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, describing the balance of the storms that affected transport and caused significant agricultural damage.
In the northwestern city of Rouen, a 30-year-old woman died after being swept away by a “mud stream” after being run over by a vehicle, the minister said.
Darmanin told the media that among those seriously injured, a 13-year-old boy was “in critical condition”.
In total, approximately 2,400 firefighters delivered approximately 3,500 relief responses.
He added that 50,000 lightning strikes were recorded.
According to Darmanin, it is “the first time in 20 years” that such a significant part of French territory has been affected by storms at the same time.
About 15,000 homes were still without electricity as of Sunday morning.
The interior minister said he would recommend declaring a “state of natural disaster” so that those affected can expedite procedures with insurers.
At Loir-et-Cher in central France, the 30,000 scouts who had gathered for a weekend camp had to be taken to safety, many of them inside the castle of Chambord.
“The storm started around 4:30 pm. It lasted a few minutes but was relatively strong and a gust of wind knocked over the observers’ tents,” a spokesman, Damien Tardy, told AFP.
10 thousand young people between the ages of 8-12 took shelter inside the castle with the cooperation of the municipality.
In the Landes and Gers region in southwestern France, hailstones the size of golf balls fell into Armagnac vineyards, growers and local officials said.
Bernard Malabirade, head of the agriculture department in Gers, said the hailstorm affected tens of thousands of hectares.
In Labastide-d’Armagnac (Landes), the mayor, Alain Gaube, believes “70% to 90% of vineyards have been lost”.
“Most of the leaves and vines are on the ground. The vines that remain (in the vineyard) are already brown, they’re dead,” he complained.
Lightning also illuminated the Brittany (northwest), Normandy (north) and Paris region.
Netizens posted footage of lightning hitting the top of the Eiffel Tower.
In Vincennes, east of Paris, the We Love Green music festival had to be stopped.
source: Noticias
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