PARIS, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Storm Nils swept across southern France, leaving about 850,000 households without electricity and prompting the highest-level weather alerts in some departments, authorities said on Thursday.
French power provider Enedis announced that 850,000 homes were without power on Thursday morning due to the storm.
Among the total, 485,000 households were in the southwestern region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, while 318,000 were in the Occitanie region. The two regions were hardest hit by power outages and severe weather conditions.
Meteo-France, the national weather service, placed four departments under red alert and 32 under orange alert for Thursday, warning of dangerous weather conditions.
For Friday, the agency forecast a slight easing of the situation, with two departments remaining on red alert and 27 on orange alert.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on social media on Thursday that one person has died and another has been seriously injured after a tree fell during the storm in southwestern France. He urged the public to remain vigilant, limit travel and strictly follow local safety instructions. ■