Seven departments of south-west France were placed on alert on Monday after wintery weather made driving conditions hazardous. Later on Monday the Paris and the surrounding region were also placed on alert for snow and ice.

• French ski resort shuts due to too much snow (08 Feb 13)
• Thief helps Paris police snare 'Corsican gangster' (01 Feb 13)
• Skier dies in French Alps avalanche (21 Jan 13)

The country’s weather service Metéo France raised the alert level to orange for the Pyrénées-Atlantiques and Hautes Pyrénees departments.

The regions of Ariège, Aude, la Haute-Garonne, le Gers and Tarn have also been placed on orange alert.

Motorists in the affected areas have been advised to take precaution due to the heavy snow and ice and to only make essential journeys.

A good part of France woke up to snow on Monday including the capital Paris, which also received a light dusting of snow. The winter weather is set to continue throughout day until Tuesday morning.

Metéo France said the snow would continue to fall on Monday in areas of France stretching from the Belgium border down to the Pyrenees, which is forecast to experience heavy falls later in the day. Temperatures are set to remain around 0°c.

The winter weather affected the usual Monday morning rush hour traffic with delays reported in numerous regions.

Heavy snow also hit the Mediterranean island of Corsica on Sunday where around 1,500 people were left without electricity for several hours.

Several roads on the island were also closed as driving became hazardous.