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French weekend weather outlook December 14 - 15: gloomy and chilly in the north
Cloudy skies are expected to dominate in the north, but in the south temperatures will still reach double figures
Storm Gloria continues in France as more rain forecast
Storm Gloria is still affecting southern France, as winds gather speed, flooding continues, thousands remain without power, and the Aude department is newly put on orange alert for heavy rain.
Authorities in the Pyrénées-Orientales (Occitanie) have confirmed that 23,000 homes remain without power today (Wednesday January 22), and several departmental roads are still closed.
A safeguarding plan has been started in Argeles-sur-Mer as water levels pass the usual warning thresholds, and the area is on alert for flooding at any moment.
Town mayor Antoine Parra told public news serviceFranceInfo: “I am worried for the next few hours. The waters are rising. The Massane [river], which runs through the urban part of the commune, is growing considerably. At this pace, it will start to cause problems very quickly.”
The department as a whole is still on orange alert for intense rain, flooding, and - at high altitudes - a risk of avalanches, after more than 40cm of snow fell overnight in some mountain areas.
#Rivesaltes Deuxième jour pour la #tempetegloria, dans les #PyrénéesOrientales la nuit a plutôt été calme. Cependant dès 6h du matin l'#Agly a été placé en vigilance orange crues tout comme le #Tech depuis 10h #Gloria pic.twitter.com/wS6XSqj1dX
— viàOccitanie (@viaOccitanieTV) January 22, 2020
Au cours des dernières 48h cumuls de pluie importants sur #PyrénéesOrientales et #Aude .
— VigiMétéoFrance (@VigiMeteoFrance) January 22, 2020
valeurs remarquables : 185mm à Argelès, 180mm à Amélie les Bains, 170mm à Prades, 107mm à Perpignan
#vigilanceOrange #Gloria
Restez informés. https://t.co/Y0gBtFNVtN pic.twitter.com/Bf4TKYdIcp
The coastline is also on yellow alert for high sea levels and dangerous waves - with intense “mousse” waves reported in Banyuls-sur-Mer in France, and in northern Spain.
Image insolite de cette écume de mer qui envahit le littoral à Banyuls-sur-Mer! #tempetegloria #tempete #gloria @BFMTV pic.twitter.com/TNSiR0EWy7
— David Unal (@david_unal) January 21, 2020
More rain is expected on Wednesday afternoon, with as much as 250-300mm forecast on the coast between Argelès et Cerbère. Up to 150mm of rain is expected elsewhere in the east of the Pyrénées-Orientales, and 40-60mm expected in the west.
Forecaster Météo France said the rain would “fluctuate in intensity” but that rainfall was expected to continue “until Thursday morning”, especially towards the south of the Aude.
🔶 2 dpts en #vigilanceOrange
— VigiMétéoFrance (@VigiMeteoFrance) January 22, 2020
Restez informés sur https://t.co/rJ24zzmmy4 pic.twitter.com/pE8XqVq39K
The “intense Mediterranean episode” is the most severe seen in winter since 1982, Météo France has said, and in Spain, four people have died in incidents linked to the storm.
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