The first claps of thunder were heard at the end of the followingnoon, before other thunderstorms broke out in the middle of the evening. From 8 p.m., falling tiles and tree branches, or even trees altogether, had been reported in Serbannes, Escurolles, Bellerive-sur-Allier… In Creuzier-le-Neuf, some said they had not never seen that in twenty years.
Then, around 10 p.m., a second storm sowed a real wind of panic. In Vichy, in the space of a few minutes, hailstones the size of tennis balls ravaged hundreds of cars, from the spa district to the banks, passing through the station district, to Cusset. The extent of the damage was also noted by the many branches strewn on the ground, the invisible bitumen under the leaves and the hailstones, but also by the impressive puddles of water, rue Clemenceau, avenue Thermale, and even in the district of station. At the end of the evening, the cars with cracked or even completely broken windshields numbered in the hundreds.
Violent hailstorms hit Puy-de-Dôme
On the internet this Saturday evening, many said they had panicked in the face of the force of a stormy phenomenon which led the mayor of the city, Frédéric Aguilera, to express himself on social networks to call for the greatest vigilance. Cars without windshields can be parked in the Place de la Poste car park, which has been exceptionally open.
The firefighters are saturated on call, while another stormy episode is expected by 2 a.m. this Sunday morning.
Pierre Geraudie
