Grains of sand on the horizon. The whole of France risks being confronted, on Saturday and Sunday, with a very particular meteorological episode, but quite usual at this time of the year: the sand cloud. An upwelling of air from the Sahara must fly over the country, causing, depending on the rain, more or less fine dust particles to fall.
In February 2021, for example, snow in the Pyrenees and the Alps had been covered with sand and certain cities like Marseille and Barcelona had seen air quality deteriorate significantly. If the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) considers that this dust is “a serious threat to health”, in France, the most visible consequence, if not the most dangerous, will be the thin film of sand which will cover the vehicles parked outside.
“A simple jet of water, it goes away”
“It’s an observable phenomenon when it rains, we have the impression that sand is falling,” explains Patrick Marlière, director of Medias-Weather, a meteorology expertise site. But the latter wants to be reassuring regarding this weekend’s episode.
“We should not expect major damage because the sandy rain episode will be very short. People simply risk finding their vehicles covered in a film of sand following the precipitation. Normally, with a simple jet of water, it goes away,” he advises.
“You should definitely not rub by hand with a sponge or cloth so as not to scratch the bodywork,” adds Olivier Bocaert, mechanic in Croisilles, in Pas-de-Calais. He recommends the Kärcher instead to effectively remove all traces of sand.
The reflex which can be costly is also to pass your hand over the car to check. Here again, risk of scratches guaranteed. On the AutoPlus websiteit is also recommended “not to use rollers” which risk “generating micro-scratches that are very difficult to remove”.
Finally, last tip, clean as quickly as possible to prevent “sand from remaining encrusted in the wheel arches and on the chassis, which can accelerate corrosion”. But for Olivier Bocaert, “it remains an infrequent and unimportant problem”.