Huge tornado tears through villages in Southern France as over 300 homes damaged

A tornado struck southwestern France on Monday, leaving 41 people injured.

More than 120 emergency workers were deployed to the scene after winds reaching 117km/h (73mph) ripped roofs off houses and damaged an estimated 300 homes on Monday.

Footage shows residents gathering around affected buildings, clearing roof tiles and covering exposed roofs with tarpaulins.

French authorities had placed swathes of the country's southwest on orange alert for storms, and numerous areas were hit by power outages and transport chaos.