Khaberni -Large areas of eastern France experienced a violent wave of thunderstorms accompanied by strong winds, resulting in the death of one person and injuries to six others, including four in critical condition, in addition to severe material damage including collapsed house roofs, uprooted trees, and power outages affecting thousands of homes.
The French meteorological service "Météo France" reported lifting the orange alert on Monday morning, as the storm that had hit areas ranging from the Loire-Swain region to the Alps receded.
In the town of Saint-Cyr in Loire-Swain, a man died after falling from a height of five meters while trying to repair the storm-damaged roof of his house. Another person was seriously injured in a similar fall in the city of Dievrous, while firefighters carried out more than 280 interventions in the region to address the effects of the storm.
In the Savoie region, a tree falling on a car carrying five people resulted in severe injuries to two occupants, while the other three were taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Firefighters and gendarmerie quickly intervened to free the injured from inside the car, according to authorities.
In the Jura region, wind speeds reached 105 km/h, leading to uprooted trees and destruction of some infrastructure, and about 4,800 people were left without electricity, while emergency teams worked through the night to reopen roads and repair faults.
In the Allier region, wind whirls caused house roofs to fly off and heavy hail to fall, creating panic among the residents. Social media platforms featured footage documenting the extent of the damage caused by the storm in several towns.
This disaster highlights once again the increasing challenges facing France due to extreme climate changes, amid warnings of the recurrence of such phenomena and the necessity of strengthening infrastructure to confront them.
