14 départements across northern France – primarily those in the north eastern quadrant – were placed on orange alert for snow and freezing rain on Tuesday, with the warning going into effect around 10pm on Tuesday.

The départements concerned with the alert for Tuesday night are; Manche, Calvados, Orne, Eure-et-Loir, Yvelines, Essonne, Seine-et-Marne, Loiret, Yonne, Côte-d’Or, Haute-Marne, Haute-Saône and Territoire de Belfort.

🔶 14 départements en Orange (https://t.co/CSYEovUfXB) pic.twitter.com/XSJm3KPFLt

— VigiMétéoFrance (@VigiMeteoFrance) January 16, 2024

Predicting heavy snow and freezing rain, the weather forecaster placed an additional 20 départements on the orange warning for Wednesday.

In total, 38 départements across northern France will be on the orange weather warning for the whole of Wednesday, with four on alert for heavy rains and flooding (Morbihan, Côtes d’Armor, Ile-et-Vilaine, and Finistère).

All of the others were placed on the alert for snow and freezing rain.

🔶 38 départements en Orange (https://t.co/CSYEovUfXB) pic.twitter.com/Nbak3yFInF

— VigiMétéoFrance (@VigiMeteoFrance) January 16, 2024

Forecasters predicted that “on Tuesday evening, light precipitation would move up from the south and continue northwards during the night” as a low pressure system moves in.

Due to freezing temperatures, the weather service warned that “significant freezing rain could make driving conditions difficult”, with snow also expected in those départements.

The new weather warnings come less than a week after snow fell across large swathes of northern France. 

Southern and south-eastern France were not expected to be affected by this episode of wintery weather.

What about temperatures this week?

In the north, frosty temperatures of 0C to -3C are expected across the northern two-thirds of France, and temperatures could get as low as -4C to -7C in the north-east. 

However, in the south, temperatures are predicted to be a lot more mild, with areas south of the Garonne river expected to see temperatures of 8C to 10C. 

Meanwhile, areas along the Mediterranean could see highs of 15C, with maximum temperatures of 18C in Basque country.