Storm Ines in Europe: a French region could be affected this Friday

This Friday, May 16, 2025, on the fringes of the Inès depression centered over southern Italy, a risk of thunderstorms will affect the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region as well as western Corsica . Information confirmed by Météo France : "it is the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region that will experience a risk of thunderstorms, some of these showers being able to overflow as far as the coast at the end of the afternoon." The organization has thus placed the departments of the region on yellow alert for thunderstorms this Friday: the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence , the Alpes-Maritimes , the Var , the Bouches-du-Rhône as well as Corse-du-Sud are concerned .

Across the rest of the country, the protective high pressure system will provide relatively pleasant and sunny weather this Friday. Temperatures will be mild, but not excessive. It will be 21 degrees in the afternoon in Paris and Strasbourg, 22 degrees in Bourges, 24 degrees in Bordeaux, and up to 25 degrees near Montpellier.

A pleasant and sunny weekend for everyone?

As stated in our dedicated article , the weather situation will remain stable in France this weekend, still under the influence of a high pressure system positioned between Scotland and Iceland, confirms Météo-France . The sun will largely dominate, despite the morning grayness between Normandy and the Belgian border, and afternoon clouds in the mountains, especially in the Southern Alps, which could locally give a thunderstorm. Temperatures will remain generally above normal, particularly in the Southwest, where up to 28°C is expected on Sunday.

However, the lack of precipitation is beginning to be felt, particularly in Hauts-de-France, which has received "no significant precipitation" since April 24.

The state of groundwater as of May 1, 2025 in France

According to the Bureau of Geological and Mining Research (BRGM), the water table situation "continues to deteriorate" in France since February, without showing any alarming phenomenon at this stage. Fifty percent of observation points remain above monthly norms. This figure is nevertheless lower than last year at the same time, when 65 percent of water tables showed an excess rate. While the Paris region, Bordeaux, and the southeast have above-average water quantities, other regions do not benefit from the same rainfall density. Brittany, the tip of Normandy, part of the Grand-Est region, and the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, are showing moderately low levels . Only the Pyrénées-Orientales department has a level considered very low, marking the most worrying situation in the country.

"At the moment, there are no fears of drought-related restrictions."

Planet spoke earlier this month with Idriss Boumaza, geographer, forecaster, and weather presenter at AGATE Météo. The weather expert described the situation as perfectly manageable: "For the moment, there is no fear of drought-related restrictions, regardless of the region." Moreover, with summer still a long way off, the risk of drought remains high, especially since early models predict a "hot and stormy" summer.