Storm Louis will be passing over Belgium in the coming hours, bringing winds of up to 110 km/h locally. Code orange has been issued for seven provinces and the Brussels-Capital-Region.
While Thursday started cloudy and mostly dry, conditions will turn in the afternoon with a code yellow warning already issued on Wednesday for rain. This will stay in place until Thursday night (23:00) in three Walloon provinces and for wind across the whole country.
The Royal Meteorological Institute (IRM) has increased the risk level since Wednesday, moving from a yellow warning to orange for wind (in all Flemish provinces, and Walloon Brabant and Hainaut) and the Brussels-Capital Region.
This will stay in place from 15:00 on Thursday to the early hours of Friday morning.
Gales up to 10 Beaufort
Storm Louis will come with winds measuring 5 to 7 on the Beaufort scale. At the coast, this could rise to 7-8 Beaufort. "On the Belgian North Sea, we expect temporary gale to severe gale (9-10 Beaufort) on Thursday night," the RMI noted. In West Flanders, the RMI therefore issued code orange for thunderstorms between 16:00 and 21:00 on Thursday.
The strongest winds will come in the late afternoon and evening. The RMI predicts wind speeds of between 80 and 110 km/h, but locally, the winds could be even stronger.
Heavy winds on the coast in November 2023. Credit: Belga
Code orange is only issued if there is a 65% chance (or greater) that the conditions that are predicted will arrive. The RMI stressed that people in code orange zones should "be prepared and follow the advice of the relevant authorities". The Home Affairs Ministry has activated the number 1722, for non-urgent assistance.
For the rest of the country code yellow remains in place with some local gusts reaching 100 km/h. Code yellow for rain still applies for the province of Luxembourg until 23:00 on Thursday night. "We expect 20 to 45 mm locally in the southern half of the province of Luxembourg and very locally in the south of Namur until midnight."
Hindrance expected
The public is advised to avoid driving near trees. Belgium's official early warning system BE-Alert sent out a message to people living in the Brussels-Capital Region to warn them of the storm and to reiterate that the roads through Forêt de Soignes will be closed to traffic as of 17:00 on Thursday.
Translation: "Storm warning. Roads through the #Zonienforest (Tervurenlaan, Lorrainedreef and Terhulpsesteenweg in Uccle and Watermael-Boitsfort) will be closed to traffic from 17:00 today."
Other parks in the region will also be closed to the public, as will parks, woods and cemeteries in Ghent, Antwerp and Leuven.
Brussels Airport has confirmed that it is monitoring wind speeds together with air traffic controller skeyes, adding that precautions will be taken if necessary, as fierce gusts can especially impact ground handling, such as baggage trolleys.
National railway company SNCB, meanwhile, is warning travellers that there may be possible disruption across the network, especially on the coast. However, no specific precautionary measures have been taken by SNCB or rail network operator Infrabel for the time being, but forecasts are being monitored.
Infrabel may impose possible speed restrictions on train traffic based on recent forecasts, it reported to Belga News Agency.
On Friday morning, the southwest wind will still be quite strong, with gusts up to 60 or 70 km/h but by the afternoon, the wind will weaken.
