IN PICTURES – A violent storm hit Marseille late Wednesday afternoon. Several streets were suddenly flooded, particularly in the Old Port. The Bouches-du-Rhône department is on storm and rain watch until Thursday.
The Figaro Marseille
The sky had not darkened like this for months. This Wednesday afternoon, torrential rains fell on Marseille in a few minutes, flooding several streets. The Old Port was particularly affected, with water stagnating in large quantities on the quays, forcing motorists to drive slowly.
On social networks, several impressive images of Marseillais with their feet in the water have been published. According to AFP, 50 to 70 mm of water has already fallen since the beginning of the day in the Marseille region. Contacted by The Figarothe Marseille marine firefighter battalion, however, indicates that it has not had any major interventions or an influx of calls linked to this sudden rain.
In a tweet, the mayor of Marseille called for the greatest vigilance. “A new stormy episode is forecast for the evening in Marseille after the heavy rains of the last few hours, writes Benoît Payan. Be careful and limit your movements. I have placed municipal services and our firefighters on alert for the duration of this orange alert.”
Up to 150 mm
In a press release, the Bouches-du-Rhône prefecture announced that the department was placed on orange alert for storms, rain and flooding from 4 p.m. this Wednesday until this Thursday. “Storms started this afternoon accompanied by strong gusts of wind and rainfall totals of around 50 mm in 1 hour in the Marseille region. Until Thursday, totals of around 30/50 mm are expected, with peaks of 80/100 mm, or even occasionally 120/150 mm, sometimes in a short space of time. At the end of the day and until the course of the next night, new storms are expected.”
Hail is also expected. “During the night, storm cells could be accompanied by intense electrical activity as well as strong gusts of wind, which could reach or exceed 100 km/h, particularly along the coast.”warns the prefecture in this press release.
