Seine tops its banks as heavy rain batters France
PARIS: The Seine burst its banks in some places in central Paris on Monday and officials in eastern France prepared emergency measures for the Rhine following torrential rain that has led to widespread flood warnings.
The Seine has turned into a powerful muddy torrent that has submerged parks and footpaths alongside its channel that runs through the French capital, while river boats are no longer able to pass under the city’s bridges.
On France’s border with Germany, officials were preparing to divert the Rhine into a 1480acre flooding containment zone if necessary, with potential snow melt adding to the risk of flooding.
Twenty departments were placed on orange alerts over the rising waters in France, with officials warning the flooding could also prompt power outages, while several dikes were also said to be at risk of failing.
In the town of Ornans in eastern France, a siren Monday morning warned residents of the rapidly rising Loue river.
“The main street is flooded, and the ground floor at city hall is underwater — we haven’t seen such flooding since 2002,” the town’s mayor, Sylvain Ducret, told AFP.
Rescue workers in the region were being kept busy, mainly to ensure people didn’t drive on flooded roads and help people whose homes had flooded. — AFP