High seas hammer into French coast

GIANT waves are hammering the Atlantic coast of France and will continue to do so over the coming days as experts warn of a series of 'supertides'.

The west coast is in the firing line of a massive sea swell - with the northwest, around La Manche, braced for the worst of the conditions.

France’s Service Hydrographique et Océanographique de la Marine (SHOM) has warned coastal walkers, fishermen and swimmers “not to venture too far”, because the “sea will rise faster than a man can run”.

At Saint-Malo, the high waves took even BFMTV forecaster Fanny Agostini by surprise:

Meanwhile, national forecaster Meteo France is monitoring an Atlantic storm which could bring winds of up to 75 mph from this afternoon.

The double whammy of high tides bringing waves higher than a four-storey building and stormy weather has prompted the prefecture of La Manche to warn residents to stay away from beaches and coastal areas.

It said: “It is recommended to people to stay away from the sea, estuaries and coastal rivers and to keep informed of developments by listening to information in the media. If necessary, move with caution limiting your speed and avoid coastal or flooded roads.”

The alignment of the Earth with the Moon and the Sun means the gravitational pull on the oceans is higher than usual this year. Experts say there will be 40 supertides scoring over 100 on the coefficient scale coming in six clutches this year - including a so-called “tide of the century”, which is forecast to hit the Atlantic west of France on March 21.

Tide coefficients, which experts use to forecast the difference in height between low and high tides, predict that today’s tide will reach 118 on a scale in which the maximum is 120.

Next month’s “tide of the century” - something of a misnomer, as they occur every 18 years or so as the moon reaches a particular point in its elliptical orbit - is expected to reach 119 on the scale. The last “tide of the century” was in 1997.

Authorities in France have grown increasingly concerned about coastal flooding. In February last year, a conveyor belt of storms between December and February hammered the west coast, and took a 10m chunk out of the Aquitaine coast.

In 2010, a high tide which rated 102 on the tidal scale coincided with the arrival of the now-notorious Storm Xynthia, in which dozens of people died as it breached sea defences caused widespread flooding, and left about 1million homes without power.

Image: BFMTV screengrab