Strong winds close ski slopes in France and leave tens of thousands without power
Fearing for the safety of skiers, several French ski resorts shut their shut their slopes on Friday while 140,000 homes were left without power in central France.
Storm Elsa that battered much of central France overnight on Thursday and Friday morning left tens of thousands without power in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
Much of the area was placed on Orange alert on Thursday evening and by Friday the storm was whipping up winds of up to 150km/h.
Forecasters say the rough weather will have blown through by Friday afternoon although more storms are forecast for the weekend.
Winds of up to 200 kilometres per hour also forced ski resorts in France's southern Pyrenees to temporarily shut down their slopes.
"We have to close when the winds are too strong to ensure the safety of skiers," said Anais Aguillon of the ski holiday website N'Py which has eight ski resorts in the Pyrenees.
Aquillon said the slopes would reopen as possible, most likely this weekend.
Au Port d’ #envalira 2400m les techniciens du @TropheeAndros_ ont dû travailler toute la nuit face aux rafales de sud >160km/h #Pyrenees #andorra #Tempete ? @yvanmullerofficiel pic.twitter.com/EULNszRXYy
— Météo Pyrénées (@Meteo_Pyrenees) December 20, 2019
National weather service Meteo France has placed four departments in the Pyrenees on the orange alert - the second highest weather warnings - for strong winds.
This is just the last episode in what has been a tumultous weather season in France, with floods and wind gusts of up to 100 km battering the south and central parts of the country just earlier this week.
Un vent de sud tempétueux se confirme jeudi soir/vendredi matin sur les reliefs (plus de 150 km/h sur crêtes des #Pyrénées) et #AuvergneRhôneAlpes (plus de 100 km/h possibles en vallées). Nouveau coup de tabac ensuite samedi/dimanche dans l'ouest et le sud-ouest. pic.twitter.com/eqyklr6unj
— Keraunos (@KeraunosObs) December 18, 2019
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Storm Elsa that battered much of central France overnight on Thursday and Friday morning left tens of thousands without power in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
Much of the area was placed on Orange alert on Thursday evening and by Friday the storm was whipping up winds of up to 150km/h.
Forecasters say the rough weather will have blown through by Friday afternoon although more storms are forecast for the weekend.
Winds of up to 200 kilometres per hour also forced ski resorts in France's southern Pyrenees to temporarily shut down their slopes.
"We have to close when the winds are too strong to ensure the safety of skiers," said Anais Aguillon of the ski holiday website N'Py which has eight ski resorts in the Pyrenees.
Aquillon said the slopes would reopen as possible, most likely this weekend.
Au Port d’ #envalira 2400m les techniciens du @TropheeAndros_ ont dû travailler toute la nuit face aux rafales de sud >160km/h #Pyrenees #andorra #Tempete ? @yvanmullerofficiel pic.twitter.com/EULNszRXYy
— Météo Pyrénées (@Meteo_Pyrenees) December 20, 2019
National weather service Meteo France has placed four departments in the Pyrenees on the orange alert - the second highest weather warnings - for strong winds.
This is just the last episode in what has been a tumultous weather season in France, with floods and wind gusts of up to 100 km battering the south and central parts of the country just earlier this week.
Un vent de sud tempétueux se confirme jeudi soir/vendredi matin sur les reliefs (plus de 150 km/h sur crêtes des #Pyrénées) et #AuvergneRhôneAlpes (plus de 100 km/h possibles en vallées). Nouveau coup de tabac ensuite samedi/dimanche dans l'ouest et le sud-ouest. pic.twitter.com/eqyklr6unj
— Keraunos (@KeraunosObs) December 18, 2019
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