France is cleaning up after storms hit the eastern part of the country on Tuesday night into Wednesday. In some regions, lightning was accompanied by hail the size of tennis balls. The violent weather also caused power outages to thousands of customers.
Violent storms swept across France on Tuesday evening storms . It thundered from Massif Central to the eastern borders of the country. The meteorological agency Meteo France reported hail in many departments, in some places more than five centimeters in diameter. Wind gusts of nearly 110 kilometers per hour were measured at the Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg international airport, located on the border with Switzerland and Germany.
Gradziny like tennis balls
As reported by local media, the violent weather caused power outages. At one point, 16,000 households were without power. In some regions, repair work on the transmission grid lasted until Wednesday.
The storms that swept through the department of Cote-d’Or also damaged many buildings. In the city of Dijon, the roof of a supermarket collapsed due to bad weather, and more than fifty houses were destroyed in the nearby towns of Meursanges and Bourguignon.
“The storm lasted about fifteen minutes, but the violence and the size of the hail, reaching seven to eight centimeters, destroyed the roofs,” Mayor of Meursanges Jean-Paul Roy said.
Storms also hit Strasbourg on Tuesday. Hail the size of tennis balls rained down on the city, shattering car windows, knocking off roof tiles and tearing off branches. In the city, there was a ban on entering city parks for fear of falling trees.
After storms in eastern FranceENEX
After storms in eastern FranceENEX
After storms in eastern FranceENEX
Meteo France, Actu Strasbourg, BFM, Le Bien Public
Main photo source: ENEX