Snow, rain storms trigger blackouts, travel chaos in France
Pastor Dale Morgan
Snow, rain storms trigger blackouts, travel chaos in France*
LYON, France (AFP) - - Heavy snow and rain storms across southern France
killed three people, cut power lines and trapped hundreds in cars and
trains and ski lifts on Sunday.
About 100,000 households were without electricity, local authorities and
the French power company said. Two thousand people were stuck for
several hours on trains running along the Mediterranean coast that were
halted when torrential rain brought down power lines.
Up to 60 centimetres (24 inches) of snow fell in hilly regions over 24
hours and the French weather service issued avalanche alerts for 12
departments.
A Swiss cross-country walker was killed and her husband seriously
injured in one avalanche on the Col de la Faucille mountain in the Jura
region of eastern France. Another woman was killed after being hit by a
train as she walked on a snow covered embankment in the Savoie region.
A 50-year-old motorist was killed after losing control of his car on a
snow covered road and falling into the Loire river in central France.
Several main highways were closed because of snow or water. The fire
brigade rescued about 50 people stuck in cars on a snowbound main road
near St Julien-Chapteuil in Haute Loire.
Heavy winds brought a ski lift at Sept Laux in the Isere region to a
standstill and emergency services rescued 50 skiers stuck on it. A men's
World Cup slalom competition at Val d'Isere was called off because the
snow storms were so intense.
The ERDF power distribution company said the Lozere and Aveyron regions
had been worst hit by power cuts, with 26,500 and 6,000 homes without
electricity respectively, and that bad weather had hampered efforts to
restore service.
Local authorities in many districts have told people to avoid driving
and stay at home on Monday.