More departments on weather alert

FIFTEEN departments along the Channel coast and the south-east corner of France are on weather alert this morning because of snow, which is forecast to hit most of the country later today.

Météo France says driving conditions will be difficult this morning in much of Normandy, Picardy, the Nord-Pas-de-Calais and northern parts of Brittany and the Pays de la Loire.

There are no school buses running in Calvados, Orne and parts of the Côtes-d'Armor, where between 5cm and 15cm of snow settled overnight.

The main A1 motorway linking the Channel with Paris is closed in the Pas-de-Calais department because of the weather, and there were up to 80km of traffic jams reported in the Lille region at 7.00 due to various accidents.

The snow will work its way south during the day, coming to the Dordogne and the Massif Central this evening.

The Alpes-Maritimes, Var and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence are also on "orange" weather alert all day today - the second-highest of four levels. EDF is warning of partial power cuts in the Paca region between 17.00 and 20.00 this evening to help manage the supply.

The Bouches-du-Rhône and lower parts of the Midi-Pyrénées region are the only areas in France that are forecast to avoid the snowfall.

Forecasters say the latest cold snap - the third nationwide spell of sub-zero weather this winter - will last until at least Sunday.

It has been the coldest winter on record since 1987 - where temperatures fell to -19°C in Toulouse and -14°C in Paris. Météo France says some regions have had 50% less sunlight than usual at this time of year.

Check the latest traffic bulletin from Bison Futé here - and the weather forecast for your area from Météo France here.