French towns swim in rising floodwaters
villennes-sur-seine (france) — Floodwaters have transformed the streets of scenic French towns into mucky canals, swallowed up picturesque parks and drained the demand for river boat cruises through Paris. And the waters are still rising.
Swollen by weeks of heavy rains, the Seine river is expected to reach its peak in the French capital late on Sunday or early Monday.
The bottom floor of the Louvre museum, several Parisian parks and riverside train stations were closed as a precaution. Water lapped the underside of historic bridges and engulfed cobblestone quays, where tree tops and lampposts now poke out of the brown, swirling Seine.
Floodwaters have halted boat traffic in Paris, closed roads and schools and prompted the evacuation of hospitals.
But Paris is better prepared than when it was hit by heavy flooding in 2016, and residents have largely taken Sunday’s flood warnings in their stride.
Other towns were not so lucky. More than 240 towns along the Seine and smaller rivers have suffered damage. —
paris — Nearly 1,500 people have been evacuated from homes in the Paris region, with authorities on alert for any major flood risk after the levels of the swollen River Seine rose further on Sunday.
Michel Delpuech, head of the Paris police body, told reporters that around 1,500 people had been moved out of homes in the Ile de France region comprising the French capital and its suburbs.
“The waters will only go away slowly,” added Delpuech.
The Seine’s waters were set to peak later on Sunday or early on Monday close to levels which led to similar flooding in 2016, authorities said.
The overflowing waters have already engulfed riverside walkways in Paris and led the worldfamous Louvre museum to close a basement display of Islamic art.
Paris’s “Bateaux Mouches” tourist boats have been shut down due to the high waters while swans have been seen swimming where there are usually pavements and rats forced up onto the streets.
Flooding caused destruction in Paris in 1910 when the Seine rose by 8.65 metres, although no deaths were recorded there.
More than 200 French towns are struggling against floodwaters that have halted boat traffic in Paris, closed roads and schools and prompted the evacuation of hospitals.
Paris regional authorities say the floods have already caused damage in 240 towns.
In Villennes-sur-Seine west of Paris, the ground floor of some buildings has disappeared underwater and residents are using boats instead of cars.
In Paris, cruise boat companies are suffering losses because all river traffic has been banned for days. —