Just days after Storm Austen battered the country, a new weather system named Boleo is set to sweep across the British Isles and northern Europe this weekend, with northern France — particularly the Pas-de-Calais department — bracing for the brunt of the impact.
Orange Alert Issued for Pas-de-Calais
Météo-France has placed Pas-de-Calais under an orange rain-flood warning from 8 p.m. Saturday until 4 a.m. Sunday, as the region prepares for another round of heavy precipitation.
The national weather service said rain would begin by midday across the northwest quarter, especially in Pas-de-Calais, and continue through the end of Saturday night into Sunday, with the most intense period expected around the middle of the night.
Forecasters expect total rainfall accumulations of 30 to 50 millimeters over the course of this new episode, on top of the precipitation already dumped by Storm Austen.
Météo-France noted that the concern surrounding Boleo is not its intensity but rather the persistence of heavy rainfall over several consecutive days.
146,000 Homes Still Without Power
As of 7 a.m. Saturday, approximately 146,000 households remained without electricity in western and northern France as a result of Storm Austen, according to Enedis. More than 55,000 were affected in Normandy and 46,000 in Brittany, the utility said, adding that repair operations would continue throughout the weekend.
For Sunday, wind gusts are expected to reach 100 km/h along the coast and 70 to 90 km/h inland from Normandy to the Hauts-de-France region, according to La Chaîne Météo. Heavy rain is also forecast from Hauts-de-France to the Lorraine foothills of the Vosges. Winds and rainfall are expected to ease by the afternoon.
Marine Submersion Risk Along the Coast
La Chaîne Météo also warned of another hazard in northern France: the risk of marine submersion on Sunday around high tide. Waves from the open sea could reach 3 to 5 meters in height, potentially causing flooding in the most exposed coastal areas.
The successive storms come on the heels of violent weather in southern France that left four people dead, including a man found dead in Corsica following record rainfall and severe flooding.
