The scenarios are being refined, the risk is becoming clearer. Snow could well fall this Thursday, November 21 in Maine-et-Loire. And it should be accompanied even more surely by freezing rain and a gust of wind. Which has also led Météo France to place many French departments located north of the Loire on yellow alert. So be careful on the roads.
On Thursday, the Caetano depression, first present off the coast of Brittany, will enter Vendée at midday then will slide over a central part of the country
explains Météo France. This depression is located at the interface of a major air mass conflict. We therefore expect snowfall (sometimes sustained) at low altitude in the cold air located to the north of the depression
adds the forecaster. And to add: The wind will blow strongly to the south of the depression
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Météo France nevertheless specifies: The exact trajectory of the depression will determine the areas affected by snow and strong gusts of wind
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The snow cover should not, however, stick to the ground, particularly on the roads, underlines Météo France even if the snow episode will not be anecdotal. At this stage, local or temporary snowfall of 2 to 5 cm is expected below 200 m altitude and 5 to 10 cm above 200 m.
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According to La Chaîne Météo, it is in the north of Maine-et-Loire that the snow cover could be the thickest.
A high risk of ice
A switch to orange snow-ice alert is also possible in the event of a worsening of the forecast because the thermometer will flirt with 0°C on Thursday morning. Negative temperatures are also forecast overnight from Thursday to Friday. With the expected precipitation, the conditions are indeed ripe for the roads to be very slippery on Thursday and Friday. Note that snow and ice vigilance will be in effect from approximately 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Anjou, Thursday
Finally, the wind should blow strong. Depending on the exact positioning of the low pressure center, wind gusts could be around 100 km/h inland between Loire-Atlantique and Cher, and reach 110-120 km/h along the coasts of Loire-Atlantique and Vendée
specifies Météo France. For the moment, gusts of at least 65 km/hour are forecast in Anjou. For the moment, the department is placed on youth alert from approximately 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. that day. But, an orange wind vigilance could be triggered if the evolution of the forecast goes in this direction
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Sharp rise in temperatures on Sunday
If the wind continues to blow this weekend, the cold spell should be short-lived. Sunday November 24, the mercury could rise to 16-18°C in Maine-et-Loire.
