Thousands of flashes and lightning strikes were recorded from the north to the south of mainland France this Thursday, October 17, according to data from the Keraunos Observatory. The country was hit by heavy rainfall.
The sky was unleashed. More than 33,000 flashes and lightning strikes were detected by the Keraunos Observatory this Thursday, October 17, particularly in the southern half of the country, while torrential rains hit many departments. Early this Friday, October 18, two departments, Var and Alpes-Maritimes, remain affected by orange vigilance for the risk of violent thunderstorms until at least 6 a.m.
According to Keraunos, 33,686 flashes and lightning strikes were recorded. The departments most affected are Haute-Loire (3,223), Aveyron (2,129) and Alpes-Maritimes (2,029).
In Haute-Loire for example, the peak of activity was recorded between 5 and 6 p.m.: 533 lightning flashes were detected in 60 minutes.
Complicated situation in Ardèche
In Ardèche, where 1,892 lightning strikes were detected this Thursday, it was the rain that caused the most damage.
In the town of Annonay, crossed by two rivers, the waters rose suddenly in the morning when the Ternay dam, to the north, overflowed.
“In the space of ten minutes there was water everywhere,” relates Patricia Montagne who lives in the city center. “It was starting to make waves, and the waterspouts started to arrive”, carrying “staggering quantities of wood”.
The center was closed to traffic, schools evacuated and people rescued by firefighters, sometimes by helicopter. The scenario was repeated throughout the department, where all schools will remain closed this Friday, but also along the Gier river, which flows into the Rhône and the Loire.
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