This storm “will cross France from west to east and cause an early winter episode that is sufficiently notable to make traffic conditions difficult in the regions concerned”, indicates Météo-France on its website.
In its Wednesday bulletin at 4 p.m., Météo-France placed 52 departments on orange alert, including 33 for snow-ice, mainly in the northern part of the country and in the Alps, and 19 for wind, from Loire-Atlantique to the Gironde then on a line going to Savoie.
“In Ile-de-France, we expect 1 to 5 cm, locally 5 to 10 cm in the south of the region,” continues Météo-France, which adds that snowfall “is also expected at low altitude in the Alps South”.
– Circulation difficile –
Further south, the wind will blow strongly with “gusts generally between 100 and 120 km/h on the coast of the departments placed on orange vigilance”, or even “130 km/h possible on the exposed islands and capes”. Inland, gusts should be around 100 km/h and up to “110 to 130 km/h on the Massif Central and more than 150 km/h on the highest points of the Alps”.
In places, temperatures should be close to those of January.
In several departments, the movement of trucks weighing more than 7.5 tonnes will be restricted, with a speed reduced by 20 km/h and will not be able to exceed. This will apply from 6 a.m. in Calvados, Côtes-d'Armor, Ille-et-Vilaine, Manche, Morbihan, Orne and Sarthe, and from 11 a.m. in Cher, Eure , Eure-et-Loir, Loir-et-Cher and Loiret.
Heavy goods vehicles weighing more than 7.5 tonnes will also be prohibited on certain sections of national roads and on the A84 between Fougères and Caen.
In Ile-de-France, the speed limit will be lowered by 20 km/h and trucks weighing more than 7.5 tonnes will not be able to overtake on major roads from 11 a.m.
The Normandy region has “decided to suspend school and commercial transport lines” all day on November 21, 2024, in the departments of Orne, Manche, Calvados and Eure.
In Eure-et-Loir, where expected snow depths could reach up to 10 cm in the hilliest areas of Perche, school transport will be suspended on Thursday, according to the prefecture. It will be the same in the agglomeration of Saint-Lô in Manche or even in Sarthe.
In Loire-Atlantique, the Saint-Nazaire bridge will be closed to traffic if wind gusts exceed 120 km/h.
Strong winds could also cause avalanches in the Alps. “Extreme vigilance is required for the practice of all mountain activities and mainly ski or snowshoe hikes” and Haute-Savoie “has an avalanche risk of 4 out of 5 on the Mont-Blanc massif”, a indicated the prefecture.
