Two people lost their lives and around twenty others were slightly injured in the Nord and Pas-de-Calais during the snowy episode which has hit the region since Wednesday.
Thursday morning, a homeless person was found dead in Valenciennes, the Northern prefecture said.
In Croix, in the Lille metropolis, a man in his fifties fell on the public highway, violently hitting his head, and investigations are underway to clarify the exact causes of his death, again according to the prefecture.
At the end of the morning, the prefecture had recorded 12 road accidents and eight people falling on public roads. It also reported seven interventions relating to a short circuit and a fall of materials on the public highway.
In Pas-de-Calais, three minor injuries were reported after their vehicle fell into a ditch on Wednesday evening in Marck, near Calais. Others “minor material accidents” occurred, mainly on the secondary network, said the Pas-de-Calais prefecture.
The Nord and Pas-de-Calais have been placed on orange snow-ice alert since Wednesday. The snow, which was still on the ground early Thursday afternoon, reached accumulations of three to ten centimeters, according to Météo-France.
Although the alert was temporarily lifted at noon, these two departments, joined by the Somme, will return to orange vigilance from 10 p.m. until 10 a.m. Friday, due to an increased risk of overnight refreeze. Neighboring departments may also be affected by this risk.
“The main snow episode has shifted towards Belgium and Germany”however specifies Météo-France in its latest bulletin.
In Amiens, the Somme prefecture announced that it had opened a gymnasium to accommodate “up to 50 people”every evening from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m., until January 14, with the logistical support of the Red Cross.
At 7:00 a.m., Enedis reported 1,400 homes without electricity, mainly in Pas-de-Calais.
Snowy roads
This winter episode is “not exceptional for the regions concerned” more “significant enough to make driving conditions difficult”noted the meteorological organization Thursday morning.
The memorial dedicated to the Canadian soldiers who died at Vimy during the First World War, under the snow on January 9, 2025 / Denis Charlet / AFP
School transport and intercity bus transport lines were suspended on Thursday in the Nord and Pas-de-Calais, and disruptions are also possible in Aisne, Oise and Somme, the Hauts-de-France region said. from-France.
In Lille, the roofs and sidewalks, covered with a white coat from Wednesday evening, welcomed new falls on Thursday morning.
“I always go to work by metro and bus. This morning, I started cleaning an hour earlier, at 7:00 a.m. instead of 8:00 a.m., in case the buses could no longer run this evening because of the ice”testifies in the city center Laura, 34 years old, maintenance worker.
In Pas-de-Calais, the roads were snow-covered and the slag heaps whitewashed, according to AFP journalists. In Paris, a few flakes fell in the morning, but without sticking to the ground.
Pedestrians walk on snowy paths in Vimy, northern France, January 9, 2025 / Denis Charlet / AFP
At the same time, seven departments are now on orange flood alert, synonymous with the risk of rivers overflowing: Oise, Seine-Maritime, Eure, Calvados, Ille-et-Vilaine, Deux- Sèvres and Vendée.
On Friday, a new disturbance will approach the north-west of the country, with snowfall expected on an axis going from Normandy to Burgundy, announced Météo-France, which also notes significant snowfall in the Alps.