Storms in Europe: Girls, 4 and 8, among more than a dozen killed in Austria, France and Italy
Violent storms in Europe have killed at least a dozen people, including two children, since Wednesday.
Five people, including two girls, aged four and eight, died as storms lashed the Alpine country late on Thursday evening.
The children were killed when strong winds toppled trees at a lake in Lavant Valley, near the southern city of Graz.
A further 13 people were injured, two of them seriously, officials said. Many of the victims were visiting the popular tourist region for their summer holidays.
Austrian President Alexander Van Der Bellen called the children’s deaths “an unfathomable tragedy”, while the mayor of the nearby town of Wolfsberg, Hannes Primus, said the area looked “like a battlefield”.
Meanwhile, three women were killed when lightning struck a tree near the central town of Gaming, causing it to fall over.
Gusts of 220 kph were recorded in France on Thursday, according to the national weather agency.
Six people were killed on the Mediterranean island of Corsica and 45,000 households were without power.
Dozens of people were injured and 12 were hospitalised, one in critical condition, authorities said. Among the dead in Corsica was a 13-year-old girl who died after a tree fell on a campsite in the coastal town of Sagone.
A 72-year-old woman was killed when a beach restaurant roof fell on her vehicle in Coggia, and a 46-year-old man died on a campsite in the town of Calvi.
French President Emmanuel Macron has chaired an interministerial government meeting in response to the crisis.
At least two people died and 18 others were injured after strong winds hit the Italian region of Tuscany.
More than 100 people were evacuated from their homes to stay in emergency accommodation in schools and gyms, according to the
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