Will Storm Floris hit France this week?

A major storm will hit the British Isles and northern Europe this week, bringing waves of up to seven metres and winds of 130 km/h to Scotland and impacting much of the UK.

Dubbed Storm Floris, it will pass directly through the Scottish Highlands today (August 4) before sweeping south over the North Sea. 

The UK’s Met Office has issued weather warnings, including in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the north of England.

Damage to buildings is expected, and some travel options such as ferries and trains will see reduced services or be temporarily cancelled. Falling trees are a major concern with drivers warned to remain cautious.

The southward trajectory of the storm has led some in northern France concerned that Floris is set to swing towards them and bring similar conditions to the country. 

However, it will at most only graze areas of France opposite the English Channel, and is not expected to bring such intense conditions to the coast. 

Focus on end-of-week heatwave

The impact of the storm in France will be limited to areas near the English Channel and in the Hauts-de-France region, said state forecaster Météo France. 

While winds may be slightly stronger and persistent drizzle will hit the areas throughout the day, this has not raised any alarms and the forecaster predicts a mostly standard if dreary day of summer weather. 

Likewise, waves from the English Channel are not expected to be significantly higher than usual.

There are no weather alerts in place at all from Météo France for any department in the country either today or tomorrow, a rarity after several recent major weather phenomena. 

Attention is instead being placed on slowly rising temperatures in the southern half of the country, with temperatures potentially reaching 40C near the Pyrénées by the end of the week and heatwave warnings expected.