Two dead after thunderstorms hit France, tens of thousands without power

PARIS - At least two people died as violent thunderstorms hit France overnight following a prolonged heatwave, and 53,000 households were left without power on Friday, French authorities said.

• One woman died after a tree fell on her in Saint-Victurnien, in the central Haute-Vienne department on Thursday evening, the local mayor said, confirming an AFP report.

• A man was found dead late on Thursday in a workshop that caught fire after being struck by lightning in Dolomieu to the east, the Isere Prefecture said.

• Grid operator Enedis said 53,000 households were left without power, with cuts mainly affecting the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes area in the southeast and the Nouvelle-Aquitaine in the southwest.

• Strong winds, with hail in some areas, subsided later on Friday, and weather service Météo-France lifted an orange alert across southeastern France.

(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Sharon Singleton, Andrei Khalip and Andrew Heavens)

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect.

This story was originally published July 17, 2026 at 6:31 AM.