Snow stops 1 in 5 TGVs from Paris

NEARLY 7,200 lorries have been ordered off the roads in 18 departments in France under special measures to deal with the snow.

Across the west, east and centre of France, 20-40cm of snow fell overnight, with the town of Mouthe (Doubs) experiencing a low of -22C, a record for November.

Elsewhere, temperatures dropped to -15C in Orléans, -11 in Chartres and -17 in Guillonville (Eure-et-Loir).

Departments in the Rhônes-Alpes and Auvergne regions ,along with the Jura, Lozère, Saône-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher, Loiret, Côtes d'Armor, Finistère and the Manche, are on orange alert for snow.

Lorries have been ordered off the roads in the Massif Central, Rhône Valley and towards the Pyrenees. Some departments have stopped their school bus services.

Some homes in the Centre are still without power, but electricity has been restored to most households in the Loiret and Loir-et-Cher departments.

Residents of Brittany are once again being asked to moderate their use of electricity.

The department risks powercuts because of the large amount of electricity it imports from neighbouring departments.

One in five TGVs leaving Paris is cancelled today and journeys are expected to take longer as the trains operate at reduced speed.

The SNCF has said travellers can use their tickets to board trains at any time, or can swap them to reserve travel at another time for no extra charge.

Photo: MysterKaplan/Twitpic