Bad weather in the Gard: the department maintained on orange flood alert and yellow for storms

Divers in the flooded watercourse of the Aiguillon in Goudargues where two people died this Sunday. MIKAEL ANISSET

After the rains from Friday March 8 to Sunday March 10 morning, several rivers reacted strongly, overflowing their beds. Assessment at 6:30 p.m.: one dead in Gagnières, two other victims found in their vehicle in Goudargues and three people missing in Dions.

The Gard department is still on orange alert for the risk of flooding this Sunday, March 10, at 6 p.m., after significant amounts of precipitation between Friday and this morning. Yellow vigilance is required for thunderstorms.

More precisely, here is the color of vigilance in the different basins: yellow on Cèze upstream, Gardons reunions and Vistre (declines begun), orange on the Cèze downstream and the Rhône (Avignon up to #39; at the sea). The flood peak is expected at the beginning of the evening for the Cèze downstream and a plateau will be reached for the Rhône this evening. Vigilance is raised for Vidourle and the two Gardons.

On the other hand, a new yellow alert for thunderstorms has been in effect since this Sunday, 4 p.m., with little precipitation (10 mm at most).

180 firefighters on the ground

180 Gard firefighters are still deployed on the ground, including 95 as extra-departmental reinforcements, with three additional groups (Gard, Aude and Pyrénées-Orientales). In the search areas, whitewater rescuers were called in as reinforcements, without forgetting two drones (from Bouches-du-Rhône), civil security helicopters (Dragon 131 and 69), others vehicles. In addition, 150 Gard gendarmes are involved, as well as two teams of divers and a drone.

The greatest vigilance is requested from road users. The toll of these bad weather is already very heavy: three deaths (one in Gagnières and two in Goudargues) and three missing in Dions.