Storm Goretti lashed England and France with hurricane-force win
ds, causing widespread disruption as it swept through northwest Europe an
d cut power to hundreds of thousands of homes.
Amber and yellow wa
rnings were in place for parts of the UK, France and the Netherlands on Frida
y morning, while Germany’s DWD issued a red alert for snowfall. The storm could dump as much as 30 centimeters (12 inches) o
f snow across western and central England, the UK’s Met Office said.
The winter storm slammed a region already battered by an Arctic blast
that has driven temperatures across northern and central Europe far below normal, roiling power markets with surging heating demand.
While the worst of the storm is expected to recede later today, gusts rea
ched 159 kilometers (99 miles) per hour at a monitoring station on the Isles
of Scilly — a record and equivalent to a Category 2 hurricane. Winds hit 148 kilometers per hour in Normandy, while g
usts of 146 kilometers per hour were recorded at the top of the Eiffel Tow
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er in Paris, according to Météo France and La Chaîne Météo.
UK forecasters issued rare red warnings ahead of the storm, urging pe
ople to stay indoors. The Met Office last issued such an alert in January 2025.
Meanwhile, Météo France warned gusts could exceed 200 kilometers per hour in areas exposed to the Atlantic.
The storm knocked out power to about 380,000 households in France, mostly in Normandy, Brittany and Picardy, as we
ll as around Paris, France Info radio reported, citing power distributor E
nedis. Thousands of technicians are working to restore the network. Schools an
d other educational institutions were closed in the Manche and Seine-Maritime departments.
French rail operator SNCF canceled more than a dozen trains, including several departing Paris, but expects services to resu
me later Friday. Some lines in greater Paris were halted after trees fell on
the tracks. In the UK, National Rail warned of widespread disr
uptions in the coming days and urged people to avoid unnecessary travel.