Storm warning: five departments on orange alert

The whole of France can expect rain or stormy weather today, with five departments in the east placed on orange alert until noon on Friday.

MeteoFrance is anticipating a "brief but intense storm passage requiring special vigilance" and placed Ain (01), Isere (38), Rhone (69), Savoie (73) and Haute-Savoie (74) on alert.

The storm "will spread throughout Auvergne and a good part of the Rhône-Alpes and will begin to take on a stormy character in the early afternoon on the south of the Massif-Central,” it added.

The majority of departments will be affected to some extent over the course of the day, with the storm present early this morning between the Loire-Atlantique and Aquitaine, before heading southwest as well as to the northwest of the country. Ile-de-France is expected to be affected in the afternoon.

As the storm gathers power, strong gusts and hail are expected in Lyon and the plains of Northern Isère, before it heads towards Ain and the Savoies, still with potentially strong winds.

There were some dramatic pre-storm images posted on social media last evening, including this from Bayonne:

And this from Sancerre in Loire: