Two men died Friday, March 31 in the Vosges and Alsace after falling trees, consequences of the "strong winds" caused by the storm Mathis, for which 23 departments were still classified in yellow vigilance in the night.

In the middle of the day, a 19-year-old man was walking on a rest area near his vehicle when he was hit by the fall of a tree in Senones, in the Vosges, explained to AFP the firefighters of the commune, confirming information from the daily Vosges Matin. Dispatched to the scene, the firefighters and the services of the Samu Lorraine tried to resuscitate him, in vain. A helicopter was also mobilized, but the body was eventually taken care of by funeral services.

In the evening, another young man, aged in his twenties, was fatally hit by a tree while driving on a road south of Mulhouse, in the Haut-Rhin, we learned from the central police station of the city, confirming information from the newspaper L'Alsace. His passenger was hospitalized "in serious condition".

During the day, several motorists had reported trunks across the road on this departmental road linking Bruebach to Mulhouse.

"Tornadoes"

Storm Mathis also caused damage in other departments, including Indre, where the town hall of Buzançais reported a "tornado". If the weather phenomenon, "very brief and very impressive" according to a spokesman for the town hall, affected only a few streets of this town of 4,500 inhabitants, the damage is significant. The town hall, which has set up a crisis unit, has identified at least 150 homes affected and major damage to the media library.

Firefighters intervened 55 times in the town for falling trees, chimneys and roofs torn off. A school was also hit, but no one was injured.

🌪️A second destructive windy phenomenon was also observed in the late morning at #Buzançais in the #Indre at the passage of a heavy stormy shower. Again, this could be a possible #tornade.
Photographs: Mickael Antigny (https://t.co/q4X6QuoH8d) pic.twitter.com/eKQDL3AEe8

— Guillaume Séchet (@Meteovilles) March 31, 2023

In the Vienne, another tornado caused damage without causing injuries in the village of Saint-Jean-de-Sauves, according to the prefecture. Some houses lost their roofs, a nursing home and the courtyard of a school were also affected.

In Hauts-de-France, storm Mathis disrupted train traffic between Lille and Douai, as well as on several axes to and from Valenciennes, because of catenary problems related to falling trees. In the Pas-de-Calais, wind gusts of up to 130 km / h were recorded Friday in Radinghem.

At midnight Friday night, Meteo-France still classified in yellow vigilance 23 departments for "strong winds", 61 departments for "thunderstorms", and 6 departments for "rain-flood".

"From Haute-Normandie to Lorraine and as far as Hauts-de-France, the wind calmed down during the night. (...) The wind from west to northwest is sensitive from the tip of Brittany to the Aquitaine coast around 60 to 70 km / h in peaks, "says the forecaster in his bulletin Saturday.

Five departments of the Alps massif are also classified in yellow vigilance "avalanches", while the coastal facade of the departments of Gironde, Landes and Pyrénées-Atlantiques is classified in "waves-submersion".

With AFP

The summary of the week France 24 invites you to look back on the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news with you everywhere! Download the France 24 app