فاس نيوز ميديا جريدة الكترونية جهوية تعنى بشؤون و أخبار جهة فاس مكناس – متجددة على مدار الساعة
France was struck by severe storms on Wednesday evening, causing significant human and material losses. According to the latest report from civil protection authorities on Thursday morning, two people were killed and 17 injured, including one critically.
A 12-year-old boy was killed by a falling tree near Montauban during the storm that hit the country overnight from Wednesday to Thursday. The orange weather alert was lifted at 3:00 AM in all affected departments.
In Mayenne, a man driving a quad bike died after colliding with a tree that had fallen onto the road during the storm, according to firefighters.
The latest civil protection update indicated that three previously critical injuries were downgraded to minor, leaving one serious injury in the Nièvre department and 16 minor injuries.
Nearly 100,000 households were left without electricity Thursday morning, mainly in southwestern France, according to the latest figures from the electricity distribution company Enedis.
The outages primarily affected 27,000 households in Auvergne and another 27,000 in the Nord-Midi-Pyrénées region, as well as 12,000 in Centre-Val de Loire, 10,500 in Burgundy, and about 10,000 in Limousin.
Enedis explained that the intense storms caused trees and branches to fall on public electricity distribution lines, disrupting the network. Difficult access to some areas is hampering repair efforts.
Rail traffic remains disrupted in several departments. The TER line between Paris and Amiens was suspended in both directions Thursday morning due to a tree threatening to fall on power cables between Amiens and Creil. Service was expected to gradually resume by late morning.
Additionally, three flights scheduled to land at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport were diverted to Lille-Lesquin Airport due to bad weather in the Paris region, according to the airport’s commercial director.
These storms followed a heatwave that saw temperatures exceed 35°C across large parts of metropolitan France. Winds reached speeds over 100 km/h during the night, causing significant damage.
Civil protection authorities reported fallen objects and trees blocking roads, damage to infrastructure and homes—especially roofs—flooding, and power outages in many affected areas.
In Valailles (Eure), lightning struck a church steeple, causing a partial collapse, while the roof of the Herqueville community hall nearby was heavily damaged.
Subscribers of the telecommunications company Free experienced network issues in seven departments, according to civil protection.
Firefighters carried out approximately 2,500 interventions across France during the night from Wednesday to Thursday to manage the storm’s aftermath and assist those affected.
These severe storms highlight the urgent need to strengthen disaster preparedness, especially amid climate changes that intensify such extreme weather events.
