Two dead in severe storm in France

In southern France, a falling tree killed a 12-year-old boy, while a man on a quad bike died after crashing into another that had been brought down by the storm.

The violent downpour late Wednesday injured 17 others, one seriously, France's emergency services said.

In the capital, the sky turned an eerie yellow hue as lightning flashed above the Sacre-Coeur cathedral and fierce winds sent Parisians rushing for cover.

The storms followed a sweltering heatwave with temperatures passing 35 degrees Celsius (95 F). It brought gusts of wind exceeding 100 kilometres per hour (62 miles per hour) that damaged property.

Nearly 100,000 homes were still without electricity on Thursday, mainly in central France, emergency services said.