Tornado in Southern France Damages 300 Homes and Injures Dozens

PARIS (AP) — A tornado struck the village of Pomas in southern France, causing damage to approximately 300 homes, destroying several cars, and injuring 39 people, according to authorities on Tuesday. The tornado hit the village, which has a population of about 1,000, on Monday, and rescue teams continued their search through the affected areas on Tuesday, with no individuals reported missing. Authorities confirmed that 20 of the injured were hospitalized, but none were in critical condition as of Tuesday evening. Emergency accommodation centers have been established to assist displaced residents. Alain Bucquet, the head of the local government office, noted that the Pomas school was partially destroyed, but assured residents that children would be able to attend classes in nearby municipalities starting on the first day of the school year in September. In the wider Aude department, around 1,400 households remained without electricity on Tuesday morning. The region was under a thunderstorm alert at the time of the tornado, with wind gusts exceeding 100 kilometers per hour (60 miles per hour) recorded at a nearby meteorological station. The third stage of the Vuelta a Espana bike race, which took place in southern France on Monday, was halted due to hail. According to Meteo France, the national weather agency, several dozen tornadoes occur annually in mainland France, most of which are of low intensity.