Depression Irène: 25 departments placed on orange vigilance for snow and ice

Les chutes de neige se poursuivent dans les Hauts-de-France, la Normandie et en région parisienne. ILLUSTRATION MAXPPP – Jean-Luc Flémal

The severe cold spell continues in the northern third of France. The Météo-France forecaster places 25 departments from Nordmandie to the Ardennes on orange alert for snow and ice this Thursday, January 18.  

Twenty-five departments, from Normandy to the Ardennes, are on orange snow-ice alert, according to the Météo France bulletin at 6 a.m. this Thursday, January 18. Orange vigilance ended in eastern France but was extended until 10 a.m. in Nord-Pas-de-Calais and the Somme.

🔶 25 départements en Orange (https://t.co/CSYEovTI83) pic.twitter.com/GQatCxzUYR

— VigiMétéoFrance (@VigiMeteoFrance) January 18, 2024

Snowfall continues, and gradually ends from Hauts-de-France to Normandy and the Paris region. However, their consequences could continue during the day with an early refreezing of the roads in the evening.

In the morning, snowfall shifts towards the Centre, Burgundy and Grand-Est, then in the afternoon, towards Limousin, Auvergne and Franche -Comté, with a possible fleeting passage to Poitou and Lyonnais. In the Alps, the limit between rain and snow is around 1500 to 1700 m.

Difficult traffic conditions

Minimum temperatures are close to -1 to -3 degrees north of the Seine, around 0 to 2 degrees in the rest of the northern half. They are often between 4 and 8 degrees south. Maximum values ​​generally do not exceed 1 to 4 degrees north of the Seine, 4 to 10 degrees north of the Loire, and go up to 13 to 17 degrees to the south.

"Traffic conditions will be very difficult in the departments placed on orange alert", specifies the meteorological institute. It is therefore advisable to act carefully on the road.