A kitesurfer has died after being thrown against the window of a beachfront restaurant during a “mini tornado” on a beach, according to French media.
A strong gust of wind caused the 31-year-old victim to collide with the Villers-sur-Mer building, about 10 km (six miles) west of Deauville on the Normandy coast.
Five more people were reported injured by “projectiles” and taken to hospital because the objects were thrown into the air on Saturday evening.
The city council said about 15 people had to be temporarily relocated.
Image: Hikers run to protect themselves in Deauville. Image: Samy Bouguern
A video on social media in Villers-sur-Mer showed walkers and hikers taking refuge in buildings on the seafront during what the mayor described as a “mini tornado”.
Strong winds reportedly lasted between 20 and 25 minutes on the Cote Fleurie between Ouistreham and Deauville.
In Deauville, strong winds caused clouds of sand as hikers rushed to take refuge.
The extreme weather was not predicted by meteorologists who did not expect the winds to be so strong, Francebleu reported.
It was “violence we have never experienced on our coast,” said Villers-sur-Mer Mayor Thierry Granturco.
Street furniture and restaurant objects flew “with incredible violence,” he explained.
He said the surfer who died was a Parisian who had a second home on the Normandy coast, Franceinfo reported.
Mayor Granturco said the victim was “thrown from the water into the wall of a restaurant, where he died.”