Violent storms have killed four people and injured about 60 in camping sites and vacation villages in southwestern France, local officials reported today.
Three other people were still missing after the sudden storms broke a heatwave along the southern part of France's Atlantic coast late yesterday evening, they said.
Falling pine trees devastated tents and trailers at a campsite in Biscarosse, a beach resort between Bordeaux and Biarritz. Winds and occasional hailstorms knocked out power supplies in the area and interrupted train services.
Several hundred people had to seek shelter in local schools or municipal buildings, officials said.
In the nearby Pyrenees-Atlantiques district, which borders Spain, fire officials registered some 200 calls for help - mainly from flooding and damaged rooftops. No injuries were reported.
Power cuts were reported in several areas, authorities said.
France's national weather service, Meteo France, issued a storm warning across western France, where heavy rain and occasional hail were forecast through the night.
Agencies
