Storm Gerard slams France with hurricane-force winds, disrupts travel
Tens of thousands were also without power in the country on Monday as the potent storm toppled trees and caused areas of flooding.
A winter storm has delayed or canceled trains in Rennes, France, due the high winds downing trees onto tracks on Jan. 16.
A strong windstorm brought an onslaught of rain, high winds and snow to France during the second half of the weekend, and its effects were still being felt on Monday. Thousands of households were without power, and some parts of the country were still under an orange alert, meaning that dangerous weather is expected.
According to AccuWeather Meteorologist Lauren Hyde, the area of low pressure that brought the unsettled weather to the country has been dubbed Storm Gerard by Météo France, the country's official meteorological service.
On Sunday evening, winds gusted higher than 70 mph (113 km/h) in numerous areas across the country, according to Météo France. At the Pointe du Raz in Finistère, located along the Brittany Coast in northwestern France, the wind gusted to 98 mph (158 km/h) Sunday night.
As a result of the strong winds, 90,000 households were without power by Monday morning, France TV Info reported. Most homes without power were located on the western side of the country.
Fallen trees disrupted roads and railway services on Monday, Connexion France reported. In France's northwesternmost region, Brittany, fallen trees were reported blocking motorists on roadways.
The SNCF, the state-owned railway company in France, reported disrupted services on Monday due to downed trees on the tracks in Pays de la Loire, Ile-de-France and Normandy, three regions of France located in the northern half of the country, AFP reported.
Photograph taken in Batz-sur-Mer illustrating the state of the ocean during the passage of storm Gerard in Loire-Atlantique, which was placed under orange vigilance for violent winds. The storm crossed the department during the night of 15 to 16 January 2023 with gusts reaching 130km/h on the coast, causing trees to fall and depriving 3,500 homes of electricity. Photo by Estelle Ruiz/Hans Lucas. France, Batz-sur-Mer - 2023-01-16.
"The train stopped in the middle of the countryside," one commuter told France TV Info Monday morning. "The controller told us that it was branches on the rails."
Rough seas in Brittany delayed ferries by almost two hours Monday morning, according to Connexion France.
In Pas-de-Calais, the heavy rain resulted in the Hem River overflowing. According to a report from France TV Info, the river reached a height of 6.10 feet (1.86 meters) on Monday.
"A small village sadly accustomed to flooding," journalist Florence Mabille reported. "Roads here are cut, a dozen houses are flooded."
Mabille said the water level on the Hem hadn't reached this height since the floods in 2012.
A kite surfer rides the waves in windy weather on the sea in Saint-Malo as the storm Gerard is raging through the western parts of the country, France, January 16, 2023. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
In the higher elevations, snow and ice created treacherous travel for many.
As strong winds, threats of flooding and snow are still affecting a large swath of the country, Météo France still has numerous regions under an orange weather alert into Wednesday. People living in areas under an orange alert are advised to stay weather aware and updated with the latest forecast.
"Another round of heavy rain and high winds can be expected across much of France as a period of active weather is set to continue across the region, with rain and even snow not out of the question over the next couple of days," Hyde said.
A state meteorological agency in Spain also issued an orange alert for parts of the Castellon and Valencia provinces, with wind gusts in the Castellon Province going up to 64 mph (104 km/h) Monday. Storms also brought rough surf to coastal areas including around Galicia.
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