(MENAFN) Storm Benjamin has caused widespread disruption across France, knocking out electricity to more than 100,000 homes, according to the country’s public energy provider.

In a statement to media, Enedis confirmed that "trees or branches falling on power lines" were responsible for the outages, which have affected regions across the country since Wednesday evening.

The hardest-hit areas include southwestern Nouvelle-Aquitaine, where 45,000 households remain without power, and parts of eastern Bourgogne-Franche-Comté and southeastern Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, each reporting 15,000 affected homes. The Charente-Maritime department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine has also seen significant disruptions, with 12,000 homes offline, while all train services in the region have been suspended. Three minor injuries have been reported.

Violent gusts of wind have uprooted trees and caused significant damage along the Atlantic coast, with Météo-France placing 19 departments on orange alert for Thursday. The storm is expected to bring even stronger gusts and high waves to coastal areas along the Atlantic and the English Channel.

In addition, the storm also affected the East of England, leaving more than 2,000 homes without electricity, according to media reports. The UK’s Met Office indicated that Storm Benjamin has begun to move away from the region, with its impacts gradually diminishing.

Meanwhile, Dutch media reported significant disruptions at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, with numerous flight cancellations and delays. The Netherlands has issued a code orange alert for its western coastal provinces, while the rest of the country is under code yellow, prompting reduced train services as a precautionary measure.

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