Two dead including child as France smashed by storms with Paris swamped by floods & 39k lightning bolts across country
Fierce winds sent locals rushing for cover as 39,000 lightning bolts eerily flashed across the country before the French capital was swamped with floodwater.
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After several days of sweltering heat, violent rain and gusty winds hit the streets of Paris, causing absolute carnage.
Footage showed streaks of lightning turning the sky into an eerie yellow hue across the capital.
Metro stations and some streets in the capital were left under water as torrential rain and lightning swept.
Parisians were seen walking down the streets flooded with rainwater.
In the Dordogne, huge hailstones tore through the roofs of the buildings during the peak of the storms.
Some than 70 buildings were damaged in the commune of Belvès alone, The Telegraph reports.
Aftermath of the violent storm showed fallen trees on the streets, while cars were left stranded in deep water.
In southern France, a falling tree tragically killed a 12-year-old boy.
Meanwhile, a man on a quad bike died after crashing into another fallen tree that was downed by the storm.
The violent downpour late Wednesday injured 17 others, including one seriously, France's emergency services said.
And rain also leaked through the roof of the lower house of parliament, forcing lawmakers to suspend talks on the conflict in the Middle East.
"It's raining in the chamber... I repeat: it's raining in the chamber," wrote MP Maud Petit on her X account.
The storms followed a sweltering heatwave with temperatures passing 35 degrees Celsius.
It brought gusts of wind exceeding 62 miles per hour that damaged property.
Nearly 100,000 homes were still without electricity on Thursday, mainly in central France, emergency services said.
"Trees blocking roads, damage to infrastructure and homes, flooding, and power outages have been reported," it reported.
Firefighters responded to some 40 reports of fallen trees.
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According to Lightning Maps, a weather-tracking website, more than 39,000 lightning strikes were recorded across France - and some in Belgium.
It comes after three people were killed in thunderstorms that battered southern France last month.
Downpours flooded entire streets, causing power and water outages and widespread destruction - as hundreds of rescuers rushed to the region famous for seeing 300 days of sunshine.
A couple in their eighties died after their car was swept away by floodwaters in the seaside town of Le Lavandou, France 24 reported.
The woman's body was found trapped inside the wreck, a public prosecutor in Toulon said.
A third person drowned in their vehicle in the commune of Vidauban, according to cops.
There were reportedly power and water outages in the town of Cavaliere, where 25cm of rain fell in the space of one hour.
A car park also collapsed in the town, leading to dozens of people needing to be rescued.
Around 200 firefighters and 35 gendarmes have reportedly been deployed in Var.
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