Weather: Worst day of the week, stormy precipitation intensifies in these departments

While a Cévennes episode began yesterday, the rains and thunderstorms are intensifying this Thursday. Thirteen departments are placed on orange alert by Météo France.

A Cévennes episode began on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday with significant accumulations of rain in several departments in the south-east of France. In its 6 a.m. bulletin, this Thursday, October 17, Météo France places thirteen departments on orange alert for rain-flooding, violent storms or floods, while it only predicted nine the day before.

This Thursday is announced as the most disrupted day of the week. It is in particular the stormy precipitations that will intensify. Between Wednesday and Thursday, or in 48 hours, the meteorological agency expects accumulations of “200 to 300 mm generalized on the Cévennes relief and peaks of 400/450 mm possible, or even very punctually more”. On the relief of the Cévennes and Vivarais, the cumulative rainfall has already reached 200 to 300 mm since the beginning of the episode and between 450 and 500 mm on the Ardèche mountains.

In the Alpes-Maritimes, establishments receiving young people, from daycare to high schools, will remain closed this Thursday. Already affected by the Cévennes episode on Wednesday, the Alpes-Maritimes will see "a new "rainy and stormy episode set in from midday on Thursday, with heavy rain occurring at times, potentially giving 70 to 80 mm in a short space of time, or even 100 mm locally on the relief". A lull is expected during the night from Thursday to Friday. In the Pyrenees, “incessant thunderstorms will set in for the day and end up giving very significant accumulations of rain, of the order of 100 mm in places, particularly on the Basque mountains” warns Météo France. 

While from Aveyron to Corrèze “rain and storms will set in in the afternoon and last until early Friday morning". “During the storms, up to 30 to 50 mm could fall in 2 to 3 hours. And more generally, over the entire episode, accumulations of 50 to 90 mm of rain are expected with possible peaks of around 100 mm towards the Lot and the west of Aveyron”.

Live

09:45 – When will the Cévennes episode end ?

According to La Chaine Météo, Friday will mark the end of the Cévennes episode, even if some rain will still persist in the morning. The weather will remain very mixed with showers and a drop in temperatures from the northwest. The weekend will also be mixed but calmer.

09:30 – Thursday, the most disturbed day of the week with a peak in intensity from the Cevennes episode

According to La Chaine Météo, Thursday marks the peak of intensity of the Cévennes episode in the southeast with heavy rain. For the morning, if the mild weather will be present, thunderstorms are forecast in Aquitaine and the Cévennes massif. As the day goes on, the showers intensify in the southwest and the center-east. “The most critical period, overall, will therefore be this Thursday between 3 p.m. and 10 p.m., at both on the western side of the Massif Central, the Causses, as well as in the PACA region,” predicts La Chaine Météo. A high risk of overflows and floods is expected. The disruption will continue into the evening.

In its 6 a.m. bulletin, Météo-France placed 13 departments on orange alert this Thursday: Loire, Haute-Loire, Corrèze, Lot, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Tarn, Aveyron, Lozère, Ardèche, Gard, Alpes-Maritimes, Aude and Hérault. Gard, Lozère and Ardèche, the last three departments still on orange alert for rain-flooding late Wednesday, are joined by Alpes-Maritimes, Aveyron, Corrèze, Lot, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Tarn, Loire and Haute-Loire. Ardèche, Lozère and Gard are also still on orange alert for flooding, joined by Aveyron. For storms, this concerns Tarn, Alpes-Maritimes, Lozère, Aude, Gard, Hérault and Aveyron.

10/16/24 – 22:33 – Already significant accumulations in the C&eacutevennes on Wednesday evening

In its 10 p.m. bulletin, Météo-France reports “significant” observations at 9 p.m. this Wednesday evening. The meteorological service indicates that on the relief of the C&eacutevennes and Vivarais, accumulations reaching “150 to 200 mm since the start of the episode, up to 300 to 300 mm at times, have been observed. 350 mm on the C&eacutevennes lozériennes". Thus fell at Villefort (48) 331 mm of rain, but also: 281 mm at Mayres (07) and 204 mm at Moissac-Vallée-Française (48).