France, England and countries across Western Europe have braced for what could be some of the highest wind speeds the region has witnessed in decades as Storm Ciarán arrived on the English coast Wednesday evening.
Heavy rain associated with the storm was pushing ashore at the southwest tip of England. The Met Office, the UK’s national weather forecaster, warned people to take care.
Residents in northwestern France were also preparing for high winds that national forecaster Météo-France warned could reach around 145 kilometres per hour across Brittany, Normandy and Pays de la Loire.
Winds of up to 170 kilometres per hour and waves of almost 10 meteres are expected in the country’s northwestern tip.
UK: More than 300 schools shut today
Hundreds of schools have announced they will close today as violent winds lash southern England and the Channel Islands.
Around 51 schools in Southampton, four in the Isle of Wight, 224 in Devon, 22 in Cornwall; nine in East Sussex, and 10 in Dorset are to close – along with all schools in Jersey.
Source: Euro News
