Storm warnings in Provence as storms hit France

The south-east of France was on storm alert Tuesday after heavy rain hit much of the country on Monday night, when Brittany in the north-west experienced 100 mm of rainfall in some areas.

Tony Cross

Thunder and lightning hit Paris on Tuesday afternoon and parts of Provence and the Côte d'Azur in the south-east of the country expected heavy storms, high winds, disruption to traffic and flooding in some areas. Hail was even possible, forecasters said.

Big waves and some flooding were also expected in some coastal areas.

If the weather in the south was expected to be “unexceptional for the season”, according to weather forecasters Météo France, the same could not be said for Brittany’s experience.

Rescue workers were overwhelmed by calls to intervene, especially in buildings affected by flooding and in the far-western Finistère region twice the usual October rainfall came down in just six hours.

Mayors near Brest are calling for the state to declare the storms a natural disaster in order to obtain aid from national government.

The storms come just after the country was surprised by an India summer that saw temperatures hit records in some areas.