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French phrase of the Day: Épisode cévenol

The Local France
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French phrase of the Day: Épisode cévenol
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

This might be a good one to throw into conversation as the summer ends.

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Why do I need to know épisode cévenol?

Because if you’re into poetry, gardening or just planning on stepping outside the house in Autumn, you might want to know that the seasons are changing for the worst.

What does it mean?

These episodes are violent storms that mainly occur in central and southern France in the autumn - they happen when the warm and humid air from the Mediterranean heads north, meeting the cold air present at high altitude in the mountain barrier of Cévennes.

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They usually involve thunderstorms and very heavy rain - usually lasting 24 to 72 hours, but in some rare cases can stay for 4 days.

These storms are usual in the autumn as the temperature changes, but because of the extremely hot summer temperatures measured in the Mediterranean sea, scientists expect more violent épisodes cévenols to happen this year, and possibly in the years to come.

The hottest the sea, the more violent the storms will be.

Use it like this

Les épisodes cévenols seront plus fréquents cette année. - the autumn storms will be more frequent this year.

Le réchauffement climatique pourrait rendre les épisodes cévenols plus fréquents. - Climate change could make these type of storms more frequent. 

Je redoute les épisodes cévenols de cette année dans notre maison secondaire du sud de la France. - I dread the storms this year in our second home in the south of France.

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