In France and England, Storm Austen, which is also reaching the Netherlands this afternoon, has caused problems. The storm made landfall this morning in Brittany where local weather stations recorded wind gusts up to 160 kilometers per hour. Due to the bad weather, ferry services between the two countries have also been canceled, such as the one between Dover and Calais.
More than 161,000 households in French coastal regions such as Brittany, Pays de la Loire, and Normandy have lost power. An orange alert is in effect until 8:00 PM tonight for 23 departments in the northwest of France. This is the second highest alarm level. Hundreds of firefighters have been deployed to respond to reports, such as fallen trees.
Yesterday, Storm Adam passed over southern France. Two people died in that storm. They were two women aged 86 and 26 who were found drowned in a cellar in the southern French region of Bouches-du-Rhône. The storm had earlier claimed four lives in Spain.
The British weather service, the Met Office, has issued an orange alert for Cornwall and Devon at the southwest tip of England. Storm Austen was accompanied there in the early morning by wind gusts up to 130 kilometers per hour. In Cornwall, more than 13,500 addresses are without power, including according to the BBC 4,600 vulnerable people.
During the day, wind gusts up to approximately 100 kilometers per hour are expected in southern and central England. The storm will move eastward along the coast of the English Channel.
Tweede storm
Weather services on the island of Jersey have issued a warning for shipping around the Channel Islands. Wind gusts up to 130 kilometers per hour are expected in that area. Authorities there had already received 91 reports this morning about fallen or damaged trees.
Because many trees are still fully in leaf, the Met Office warns of more power outages and traffic disruptions due to fallen trees and broken branches. In addition to strong winds, a lot of rain is also expected in many places in England. Later this weekend, a second severe storm is expected in the UK, which will mainly bring strong winds and heavy rain in the northern part of the country.
Both countries have taken measures to limit inconvenience and problems. In France, train connections in parts of Normandy have been suspended and speed restrictions apply on other routes. Authorities have urged people to postpone non-essential travel due to the risk of falling trees and flying debris.
Belgium is also affected by Storm Austen. The Belgian meteorological institute has issued an orange alert for the west of the country, while yellow is in effect in the rest of the country.
Code geel
Storm Austen will move over the Netherlands from the southwest this afternoon with heavy rain and wind. The KNMI warns from late afternoon of severe wind gusts in the coastal areas and in the southeast, with wind gusts between 75 and 90 km per hour.
From this afternoon, a yellow code applies for South Holland, Zeeland, North Brabant, Limburg, Gelderland, and Overijssel. From tomorrow afternoon, the KNMI again expects severe wind gusts in coastal areas and South Limburg. During the night, the wind will decrease again.