end of vigilance for rain and floods in the center; Savoie placed on “orange flood alert”

Savoie was placed on orange flood alert on Thursday, September 5, after the heavy rains that hit the region, but the rain and flood alert is no longer in effect in seven central departments, Météo-France announced in its latest 10 a.m. bulletin. “Rain showers and thunderstorms, sometimes very intense, have affected several areas since Wednesday, particularly the reliefs of the Massif Central and the Alps, as well as the Mediterranean coast. They have caused a sudden and brutal rise in the Arc [un affluent de l’Isère] in Maurienne »in Savoie, explains the Vigicrue website.

A rainy and stormy episode hit the South-East hard during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, without causing major damage. In the Mediterranean regions, “The storms were very active” in the night, Météo-France notes in its latest bulletin, with “more than 9,000 lightning strikes” registered in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur.

According to the meteorological institute, the rainy episode was particularly heavy at certain stations, such as Fréjus (Var) and Mandelieu-la-Napoule (Alpes-Maritimes) “with more than 140 mm in twenty-four hours, or more than a month of rain. Heavy storms also occurred in Marseille, with 71 mm over the day” Wednesday.

In Mandelieu-la-Napoule, firefighters evacuated around forty residents of a home for independent seniors to a gymnasium overnight after a collapsed roof caused water leaks, they told Agence France-Presse (AFP). Train traffic was also expected to be interrupted until at least midday between Cannes and Saint-Raphaël, due to a “obstacle on the tracks” following bad weather, causing significant delays, specifies the SNCF on X.

Torrential rains in downtown Marseille

In Marseille, where the sun returned on Thursday morning, the heavy rainfall recorded on Wednesday afternoon forced the organizers of the Delta Festival, where Justice, Julien Granel and Caravan Palace were due to play, to cancel the first evening, “to ensure everyone’s safety”its organizers announced on Instagram. The festival will open its doors on Thursday at 4 p.m. and will last until Sunday, they nevertheless assured.

On the French Riviera, a large lightning strike hit a stone cross on the dome of the Basilica of Saint-Raphaël (Var), firefighters reported to AFP. This cross fell onto the public highway but without causing any injuries, they added.

From Haute-Loire to Yonne, a rainy axis should settle in on Wednesday evening. The rains should “persist until Thursday”with expected accumulations “from 50 millimeters to 70 millimeters locally, 100 millimeters along this axis”adds Météo-France.

In Vaucluse, access to the Toulourenc gorges site has been prohibited to the public in the municipalities of Malaucène and Saint-Léger-du-Ventoux, as a precaution due to the risk of flooding until the orange alert is lifted, the prefecture announced.