Winds up to 105km/h: Charente Goes on Orange Alert, Angoulême-Saintes Trains Canceled this Thursday

Charente is placed on orange alert for strong winds from this Thursday 6 a.m. until around 2 p.m. Gusts of up to 105km/h expected. The Atlantic coast will be even more affected with a risk of flooding

Storm Benjamin will cause “violent gusts of wind” and “strong waves” on the Atlantic coast and the Channel coast on Thursday morning, Météo-France announced on Wednesday, placing eighteen departments on orange alert. Charente is now one of them. With orange alert for the wind from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. The department remains on yellow alert for rain, floods and thunderstorms.

Météo France announces gusts of 90 km/h in Angoulême, 95km/h in Cognac, and up to 100km/h in Saint-Meme-les-Carrières and even 105km/h in Barbezieux. The north east of the department will be a little less affected. Consequence: there will be no train between Angoulême and Saintes all day.

Jérôme Harnois, prefect of Charente, urges everyone “to be extremely vigilant and to respect safety instructions”. He advises: limit your travel, your speed on roads and highways, particularly if you drive a vehicle or hitch sensitive to the effects of wind; do not walk in the forest and on the coast; in town, be vigilant against possible falls of various objects; do not work on roofs and under no circumstances touch electrical wires that have fallen to the ground; store or secure objects sensitive to the effects of wind or likely to be damaged; It is imperative to install generators outside buildings. ”

It is possible to follow the evolution of the situation on the Météo France voice server on 05 67 22 95 00 (non-premium rate call, rate depending on operator), or on the vigilance site: https://vigilance.meteofrance.fr/fr

Risks of flooding

Manche, Vendée, Charente-Maritime, Gironde, Landes and Pyrénées-Atlantiques will be particularly exposed. Winds blowing from west to northwest will cause “very strong waves and a temporary rise in sea level”, adds Météo-France. This phenomenon, combined with “white water” tidal coefficients (around 80), risks causing “flooding” on the coasts of Gironde, Landes and Pyrénées-Atlantiques, as well as in Seine- Maritime, departments placed on orange alert in this regard from the end of next night until mid-afternoon Thursday.

This “strong autumn storm”, which occurs “after a long period of calm weather”, will fuel a “strong wind” over almost the entire country, predicts Météo-France, which also expects large accumulations of rain in the Northern Alps.