Storm Goretti will sweep across Belgium on Friday, bringing rain, snow and strong winds, according to forecasts from the Royal Meteorological Institute (IRM).
Rainfall is expected to turn to snow by late morning in the High Fens region and then gradually spread across other parts of the Sambre and Meuse valley. Temperatures will drop, ranging from 0°C in the High Fens, to 2°C in central areas, and up to 6°C at the coast.
Strong south-westerly winds will be a significant concern, especially in the morning. Gusts of between 80 to 90 km/h, and potentially higher in isolated areas, are likely inland. Wind speeds are expected to ease later in the afternoon.
On Friday night and into Saturday morning, skies will remain cloudy to overcast with further precipitation. Heavy rainfall is anticipated particularly in the southern and eastern regions, while snowfall is forecast for areas south of the Sambre and Meuse valley.
A yellow alert for wind and rain and an orange alert for slippery conditions have been issued for Friday and Saturday. The provinces of Namur, Liège, and Luxembourg are particularly affected.
Anticipating significant snowfall in southern parts of Belgium, the Road Action Cell (CAR) will implement reinforced vigilance measures across Wallonia starting at 9 am on Friday.
Van struck by tree branch on Avenue Louise
Brussels firefighters responded to around 30 incidents on Friday caused by the storm's strong winds, with no injuries reported so far.
Twenty-five of the interventions were related to fallen trees or broken branches, some of which damaged vehicles, according to the fire service spokesperson Walter Derieuw.
On Avenue Louise, a van was struck by a falling tree branch, leading to a temporary and partial closure of the avenue.
Firefighters also dealt with eight cases of flooded streets, mostly due to blocked drains. "At this stage, no injuries have been reported," Derieuw said.
Initial observations suggest the worst of the wind gusts has passed, the firefighters stated.
Teams remain on standby, and an updated report is expected later in the afternoon, they concluded.
Thousands without electricity in France
Approximately 380,000 customers in France were left without electricity early on Friday morning following as Storm Goretti lashed the north-west of the country. Winds exceeded 200 km/h in some areas, according to grid operator Enedis.
The hardest-hit region was Normandy, where 266,200 homes experienced outages overnight as the storm swept through.
Other affected areas included Brittany, with 21,000 households, Picardy with 18,500, and Ile-de-France, where 13,500 homes were impacted.
French authorities reported no serious casualties in the preliminary assessments conducted on Friday morning.
Updates on traffic conditions across the Walloon region are available on the websites trafiroutes.wallonie.be or inforoutes.be.
Traffic jams near Brussels
Traffic on the E40 near Affligem was severely disrupted on Friday morning due to a fallen tree on the motorway, according to the Flemish Traffic Centre (Vlaams Verkeerscentrum).
Initially, two lanes were blocked, but one was cleared later. Despite this, significant delays persisted, with drivers heading towards Brussels experiencing a 75-minute delay at around 8.30 am.
The centre has not yet provided an estimate for when conditions will normalise.
Meanwhile, the E19 motorway faced congestion after two trees fell near Zemst at around 7:15 am. Motorists heading towards Brussels were stuck in traffic with delays of approximately 45 minutes. The fallen trees on the E19 were cleared by around 8 am.
