The Rhône on red “flood” alert, residents and schoolchildren evacuated, roads and railways cut

Roads and railways cut, commercial area evacuated, the situation has been evolving hour by hour since 10:00 this Thursday morning in the Rhône. 80 mm of rain have already fallen in the south of the department which has been placed on orange “rain-flood” alert and red “flood” alert.

Since 10:00 a.m. this Thursday morning, cumulative precipitation ranging from 80 to 120 mm is forecast until the middle of the night.

Faced with this rainy-stormy episode which is crossing the Rhône department, everyone is called upon to be vigilant. The Prefecture recommends “avoid all outdoor leisure activities“, “to find out about the state of road networks and to be careful, as traffic conditions can become dangerous“, “not to under any circumstances go on foot or by car on a submerged path or near a watercourse” et “to find safety on high points or to take shelter upstairs“.

There are currently 112 firefighter interventions on the Rhône, mainly linked to flooding.

This heavy rainfall required cutting the A47 motorway at interchange no. 10 “Givors Ouest” (direction Saint Etienne-Lyon) and at Ternay (direction Lyon-Saint Etienne).

The departmental roads D488, D502, D103 and D342 are impassable.

Rail traffic between Lyon and Saint-Etienne is interrupted.

Many roads are flooded, particularly in the south of the Rhône where 80 mm of water has already fallen and 150 mm is still expected.

In Givors, where the motorway is cut, the commercial area has been completely evacuated.

In Grigny (Rhône), 80 children were evacuated.as a precaution” according to the mayor, Xavier Odo. Around forty residents of an area threatened by flooding were also evacuated and welcomed to the village hall where they will receive a meal.

At Givors, the Giers exceeds the dike. The Cornets district is being evacuated.

Tags France Lyon Grigny