France’s supercell storms kill two after heatwave

Photo: Lemonde

France has been rocked by a deadly one-two punch: a blistering heatwave followed by fierce supercell storms. The powerful weather systems, triggered by extreme atmospheric instability, uprooted trees and unleashed winds reaching 120 km/h or more.

At least 17 others sustained injuries, including four in serious condition from falling debris.

The storms rolled from the Pyrenees toward Normandy, unleashing torrential rain, hail often as large as tennis balls, and over 39,000 lightning strikes recorded across France and Belgium. Paris was heavily affected: streets and metro stations flooded, and a breach in the National Assembly’s ceiling forced a temporary suspension of Prime Minister François Bayrou’s speech.

Widespread power outages left approximately 110,000 100,000 homes without electricity. Farmers are counting heavy losses, especially in Champagne, Picardy, the Basque Country, and Landes—where hail and floods devastated crops—prompting calls for government aid.

Meteorologists from Météo-France attribute the supercell formation to soaring temperatures—briefly hitting 40 °C—followed by rapid cooling aloft, creating the perfect conditions for rotating storms