Intense storms forecast across northern and central France

France is bracing itself for another day of intense storms with almost all departments facing at least some form of alert over today’s conditions. 

Stormy weather has already begun in northern and central France this morning, bringing rain to areas near the Belgian border and Burgundy.

By early afternoon, the storm systems will expand to cover essentially all of northern and central France, bringing violent rain and a risk of hail to millions of people living in the affected regions.

Conditions are similar to storms that hit western regions yesterday, with state forecaster Météo France forecasting hail of between 2cm - 5cm across northern and central France, rainfall of up to 30mm in one hour, and winds of up to 80km/h. 

The forecaster also noted that the storms could result in isolated tornadoes.

The video below shows the expected passage of the storm today, and where conditions will be most intense. 

Storms may snake towards the south-west and southern stretch of the Massif Central in the evening but will be less intense the further south they go.

While storms are not forecast to sweep east, persistent rainfall across the evening and into Friday morning is also forecast in Alsace as well as the Rhône Valley, and Alps. Up to 60mm may fall overnight.

In its 10:00 bulletin, the state forecaster placed 39 departments on a heightened alert for stormy conditions across the north and centre of France. 

Heightened alerts in the north will last until midnight, and in central France run until around 06:00 in the morning.

Many departments also have additional warnings for heavy rain/flash flooding or strong winds, and only mainland departments along the Mediterranean are free of any weather alerts.

Our article here explains how to best keep up with all alerts in your area – it is worth regularly checking as official warnings can quickly change during periods of intense weather.

Corsica remains on a heightened alert for heatwave conditions today as it remains under the influence of hot Sirocco winds blowing in from North Africa.

Our article here covers what you should do in the event of a storm whether you are at home, in your vehicle, or outside. 

Improvement on Friday?

The country has already faced several storms this week, including on Monday, August 24, when a tornado ripped through Pomas (Aude) destroying more than 100 homes. 

While storms today are likely to be cumulatively the most intense of the week, stormy conditions will remain in place across the east on Friday, particularly in the Alps. 

A risk of storms will also remain across the north tomorrow, running from Paris to Lille, with the north under persistent drizzle.

However, exact conditions are still unknown and it is possible that heightened alerts – not yet in place for the afternoon on Friday – may return.