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WEATHER

UPDATE: More snow and ice weather warnings issued across France

People living in 11 French départements have been told to be "very vigilant" due to snowy and icy weather conditions forecast for Thursday night and Friday.

Published: 28 March 2022 18:08 CEST
Updated: 31 March 2022 16:46 CEST
11 French départements have been warned to be
11 French départements have been warned to be "very vigilant" about snow and ice, amid a dramatic drop in temperatures. (Photo by JEFF PACHOUD / AFP)

A severe drop in temperatures across the country has led Météo France, the public meteorological service, to issue 11 orange alerts over snow and ice. 

The following départements can expect significant snowfall late Thursday and into Friday: Loire, Haute Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, Creuse, Orne, Calvados, Eure, Seine-Maritime, Somme, Pas-de-Calais and Nord. 

Some areas may receive as much as 10 cm of snowfall overnight.

11 French départements, in the north and centre of the country, have been given 'orange alerts' for bad weather.

11 French départements, in the north and centre of the country, have been given ‘orange alerts’ for snow and ice. (Source: Météo France)

Temperatures across the country had dropped by Thursday morning but Friday appears to be the day when snowfall will be widest, with temperatures hovering just above freezing in much of the country that night. 

Meteorologist Gilles Matricon told Le Parisien that the abrupt change to the weather, which comes after weeks of pleasant temperatures and sunshine across much of France, is due to the collapse of an anticyclone that has hovered over northern Europe for about a month now. 

“Cold air will descend from Scandinavia to France plunging us into winter,” he warned predicting a decline in temperatures of 10 C from Monday to Thursday. 

The last of the snowflakes are predicted to fall on April 4th. The authorities are yet to issue a weather warning. 

Frosty mornings have the potential to cause damage to a number of French agricultural sectors. Cold temperatures in April 2021 are estimated to have cost French vineyards upwards of €2 billion in damage, with about a third of all production lost. 

The situation should not be as bad this time around, according to Matthieu Regimbeau, an agronomical engineer cited in Le Parisien. 

“The frost will be less present and the temperatures will not drop too much at night,” he explained. 

Colder temperatures are undoubtedly good news however, for ski resorts, who may be able to prolong their season thanks to a delayed melting of snow. 

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ENVIRONMENT

Homes evacuated as floods hit village in French Alps

More than 50 people had to be evacuated from their homes in a village in the French Alps as violent storms struck the south-east of the country.

Published: 26 June 2024 11:33 CEST
Homes evacuated as floods hit village in French Alps

Less than four years after storm Alex struck the Boréon area of the Alpes-Maritimes département in September 2020, leading to 10 deaths, it was once again hit by severe weather, as the storms combined with high-altitude snow melt caused the Vésubie river to burst its banks.

The 1,400-population village of Saint-Martin-Vésubie, which was cut off from the rest of the country by the devastating 2020 storm, was again affected by severe weather.

Thierry Ingigliardi, the village’s deputy mayor in charge said: “Everything is being destroyed, we’re suffering the loss of roads yet again.” 

As a precaution, 52 people, including four children, were evacuated to a community hall.

But there was some confusion over the scale of damage caused by the flooding, after current Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin posted a message on X, formerly Twitter, saying that bridges had been washed away in the flooding. 

“None of the bridges are threatened, two fords have been washed away,” Gaël Nofri, deputy mayor of Nice, clarified on the social network.

But at least two bridges have been damaged, leaving around 20 homes cut off, while two other structures are still ‘under surveillance’, as the local council reported earlier. The latter also deplored “temporary infrastructures that are not holding”.

Hugues Moutouh, prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes region, told BFMTV: “Everyone is annoyed (…) It’s been going on for months now, we’re using temporary structures.”

Moutouh says he did not want “to come here again to see how powerless we are” when seasonal storms known as épisodes méditerranéens return in autumn. 

The storms in the Alps led to ‘once-in-a-century’ flooding in the Vaud canton of Switzlerand. Around one month’s rain fall fell in just an hour and caused major flooding in the town of Morges, which stands on the banks of Lake Geneva.

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