Hurricane force winds wreak havoc across northern France

A POWERFUL storm packing hurricane-force winds lashed northern France yesterday, killing two people and forcing officials to close down the Eiffel Tower and the famed Paris parks.

A Parisian woman died when her car was crushed by a tree and a man was decapitated by flying sheet metal, officials said.

Rescue workers in Paris closed the famed Sainte-Chapelle monument, renowned for its stained glass windows, because a stone angel on its roof risked being toppled by the gusts. Paris City Hall then ordered the Eiffel Tower to be closed as well as Paris parks and outdoor ice skating rinks.