High winds close French airports

[Nigel C]

From www.news.com.au
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574...-23109,00.html

Big blow closes international airports
From correspondents in Paris
Agence France-Presse
February 10, 2009 01:22pm

HIGH winds have lashed France forcing the closure of the capital's two international airports for the first time in 34 years.
Winds gusting to 130km/h were recorded on France's Atlantic coast late on Monday. Forecasters say they could reach up to 160km/h.

With gusts of up to 100km/h expected to hit the Paris region, authorities closed the capital's two international airports from Monday evening until 10am on Tuesday morning (2000 AEDT Tuesday).
All flights to and from the city's two main airports, Charles de Gaulle (Roissy) and Orly, have been cancelled within that time and travellers have been told not to head to either facility.

Charles de Gaulle is one of the busiest airports in Europe.

Air France has reserved 2000 hotel rooms near Charles de Gaulle for passengers, but airport authorities said some 100 passengers were spending the night in transit lounges.

Regional airports in Nantes, Brest and Rennes remained opened, although several flights were cancelled.

The extreme weather comes just two weeks after a storm left 11 dead in the southwest.

The long Atlantic coast was expected to be worst hit, with heavy rain and powerful winds, but the entire west and north of the country was in the storm's path, weather forecasters said.

Ferries between Brittany and nearby islands were suspended, operators Oceane and Penn Ar Bedd said, while Brittany Ferries postponed the inaugural sailing today of its service from Roscoff to Plymouth in southern Britain.

Dispatchers in coastal regions said late yesterday that emergency services had received numerous calls for fallen trees and several for roof damage, but that the situation was calm.

School bus services were cancelled in some regions over fears of fallen trees, and truck traffic was prohibited near Bordeaux due to the wind.

The French navy has put three rescue vessels on standby to sail to the aid of any shipping in difficulty in the mouth of the Channel, while sandbags have been deployed on sea-fronts exposed to potential flooding.

Air France said it expected serious delays today when operations resume at Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports, but that if the weather forecasts were accurate it would be able to make all scheduled long-haul flights after 10am except for one to New York and one to Beirut.