French aviation officials ordered the closure of Paris's three airports on Monday as a precaution after a powerful storm struck northern France.

In a highly unusual move, the French civil aviation authority said Roissy-CDG, Orly and Bourget airports would remain closed from 8 pm on Monday until 10 am on Tuesday (1900-0900 GMT).

The French weather office has warned much of northern France will be battered overnight by gales in excess of 100 kph (60 mph), with gusts of up 160 kph possible in some western coastal areas.

Air France said it had canceled 210 flights on Monday evening and asked passengers not to turn up to Paris airports until Tuesday morning.

The French carrier also reserved 1,400 hotel rooms at Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport for transfer passengers already blocked there.

It is the second major storm to hit France in less than a month. On January 24, winds of up to 190 km blasted the southwest, killing at least four people and leaving thousands without power for days.

Insurers have estimated that that storm caused more than EUR€1 billion (USD$1.3 billion) of damage. The French weather office said the latest storm would not be as powerful, but would hit a much larger swathe of the country.