A German woman walking on a beach in Porto on the French Mediterranean Island of Corsica was swept to her death Sunday, May 5, 2019, authorities said.

(Pascal Pochard-Casabianca/AFP/Getty Images)

At a Glance

Rescue operations were launched, but they were unsuccessful. Southeastern France has been battered by winds gusting up to 80 mph.

Efforts to rescue a woman swept off a beach in Corsica on Sunday by strong, wind-driven waves were unsuccessful, French authorities said.

The French maritime authority said the German woman, who was in her 60s, was walking along the beach in Porto on the Mediterranean island when the waves pulled her into the sea as powerful winds batter the region.

The maritime authority tweeted that a rescue operation was launched in the Gulf of Porto, but the woman did not survive.

Unusually cold and windy weather hit much of France over the weekend. Hail fell on the Paris region and the national weather service warned of winds of up to 80 mph Sunday in regions near the Mediterranean Sea. Some public events in Marseille were canceled because of the weather.