Rare, Powerful Tornado Tears Through Southern France, Injuring Dozens and Damaging Hundreds of Homes

An unusually powerful tornado struck the Aude department in southwestern France yesterday (Monday), injuring at least 39 people and leaving extensive damage to hundreds of homes in its wake. Two of those injured were listed in critical condition, while emergency crews continued searching the area today for possible victims. According to authorities, there were no reports of missing people.

France's interior minister, Laurent Nuñez, described the event as a "tornado of rare intensity" that hit the department, located in the Occitanie region, in the late afternoon. The national weather service, Météo-France, said the storm struck a series of towns and villages in the area.

The hardest-hit area was the town of Pomas, home to about 1,000 people. Fifteen residents were hospitalized, and roughly 300 homes were damaged. Following warnings issued before the storm, many residents had time to take shelter in a community center.

More than 120 firefighters worked in Pomas to clear debris, and local authorities urged residents not to return to their homes for the time being. Mayor Hervé Giné said that the fact that no one was killed was "a true miracle." In his words, "The property damage is very severe; it hurts. Some people lost everything they had."

The tornado also caused widespread disruptions to electricity service in 10 communities across the region. About 2,800 households were cut off from the grid after the storm, with power restored to roughly half of them today. Emmanuel Plantier-Lemarchand, secretary-general of the Aude department, said authorities had issued an early warning, but that predicting the tornado's path was difficult.

Tornadoes are not unknown in France, occurring each year mainly in the country's northwest and along the Mediterranean coast. Usually, however, they are relatively small and weak storms, which also makes accurately forecasting them difficult.