The Departmental Archives of the Somme have undergone a flood due to a rupture of pipes occurred during the weekend of January 11 and 12, 2025. This disaster intervened on the site of rue Saint-Fuscien in Amiens touched the five levels of sub -Sol dedicated to the conservation of heritage documents, resulting in the evacuation of 210 linear meters of documents, including 100 meters directly affected by water.
The affected documents cover significant historical periods, In particular from 1790 to 1940, including registration, cadastre, municipal, military and teaching affairs archives.
Archives teams are currently all mobilized to dry up damaged documents and prevent the development of mold. The reading room and the meeting room have been transformed into a withdrawal area for damaged documents. Consequently, the establishment is closed to the public, but hopes to be able to reopen FEVIE currentR, even “If it will take a year to dry the archives one by one”.
Drying operations consist in spreading wet documents in the available workspaces, inserting absorbent paper between the pages of the registers and bundles, in order to limit the proliferation of microorganisms. Some parts have been equipped with fans and dehumidifiers to manage the temperature and the humidity of the premises.
-Genealogists, main users of these archives, are invited to wait and refer to other research in order to consult the digitized documents available on the website of the Somme Departmental Archives.
Belgium
