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Northern France on high alert for storms this afternoon

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Northern France on high alert for storms this afternoon
Photo: Météo France
12:45 CEST+02:00
Northern France has been placed on alert for storms on Wednesday as extreme weather is set to his most of the country.

The violent storms will make the glimmer of summer that the country was treated to over the past two weekends seem like a distant memory.

The départements of Nord, le Pas-de-Calais, l'Aisne, la Somme and la Seine-Maritime are due to be the worst affected, according to Météo France. They have been placed on Orange Alert - the second highest warning level.

Very few regions will be able to escape the weather, with all but the very southwestern coastline of Aquitaine due to be hit by heavy rain at the very least.

Although temperatures will be remaining fairly high, anyone living or visiting northern France should not make any outdoor plans for this afternoon, as the country is due to be hit by violent thunderstorms and even hailstorms, in certain areas. 

Red 'G' marks where there will be hailstorms. Photo: Météo France

During the prime time for people travelling home from work and into the evening, the storms will develop and extend further and more intensely towards the eastern parts of the North. 

Rainfall is expected to reach an intensity of between 20-40mm/h so any coats that had been packed away will need to be dug out again. 

The storms will intensify and spread as the evening develops. Photo: Météo France

Although the storms are set to die down after 8pm, for anyone who was hoping to go out this evening, be prepared for the rain to continue into the early hours. 

The forecast states that winds will reach a speed of 80km per hour. So all those summer parasols that Families across France spent hours erecting in their gardens over the weekend will need to be taken down once more incase they end up getting blown away.

As the storms die down, the rain will continue. Photo: Météo France

Unfortunately, it seems the rain is set to stay. Météo France have warned that the downpour will continue until at least tomorrow evening in both the south east and the north, even if the storms will finish before the morning.

Photo: Météo France

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