A tornado tore through the northern suburbs of Paris on Monday, toppling a crane and killing one person, according to the authorities.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed the casualties in a social media post, describing the tornado that hit several municipalities in the Val-d’Oise department as “sudden and rare in intensity.”
A video posted on social media purportedly showed three construction cranes in the commune of Ermont collapsing in the wake of the tornado. Ermont is about 10 miles northwest of Paris.
Another user posted a video that they said was of the tornado crossing the A115 highway, blowing dust and debris into the path of cars.
There are dozens of tornadoes each year in France, according to Météo-France, the country’s official meteorological agency. They are usually of low intensity and short-lived, and typically appear in the country’s northwest or its Mediterranean coast, far from dense urban areas like Paris.
Francesca Regalado is a Times reporter covering breaking news.
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