Related News
Power cut to a million homes by severe gales
Source: Agencies |
January 25, 2009, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
GALES battered southwest France yesterday, bringing down power lines and cutting electricity supplies to nearly one million homes, authorities said.
Winds of up to 173 kilometers an hour closed several airports, including Bordeaux, and halted rail traffic.
Dozens of roads were blocked by fallen trees and debris.
Authorities urged residents of the southwest region to stay at home for their own safety. No casualties were reported.
"The number of clients who are cut off from the grid is rising from minute to minute as the storm moves eastwards," said Michel Francony, president of power distributor Electricite Reseau Distribution France.
"There are close to one million clients cut off at this point," he said, adding that 1,000 ERDF workers had been mobilized to restore supplies but had trouble reaching affected areas because of heavily blocked roads.
Etienne Guyot, the prefect of Landes administrative area on the southwestern Atlantic coast, said winds of up to 173km an hour had been measured on the coast and up to 140km an hour inland at Mont de Marsan.
The weather drew comparisons with a huge storm in 1999, when nearly 4 million people were left without electricity and 88 people were killed in France.
Winds of up to 173 kilometers an hour closed several airports, including Bordeaux, and halted rail traffic.
Dozens of roads were blocked by fallen trees and debris.
Authorities urged residents of the southwest region to stay at home for their own safety. No casualties were reported.
"The number of clients who are cut off from the grid is rising from minute to minute as the storm moves eastwards," said Michel Francony, president of power distributor Electricite Reseau Distribution France.
"There are close to one million clients cut off at this point," he said, adding that 1,000 ERDF workers had been mobilized to restore supplies but had trouble reaching affected areas because of heavily blocked roads.
Etienne Guyot, the prefect of Landes administrative area on the southwestern Atlantic coast, said winds of up to 173km an hour had been measured on the coast and up to 140km an hour inland at Mont de Marsan.
The weather drew comparisons with a huge storm in 1999, when nearly 4 million people were left without electricity and 88 people were killed in France.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
