Storm Monica: three dead, four missing, damage and homes without electricity… terrible weekend of bad weather in the South

Emergency services were mobilized all weekend. Midi Libre – Mikael Anisset

This weekend, storm Monica swept across the south of France, causing violent floods in its path. The bodies of three victims were found lifeless on March 10, while four people are still missing. We take stock of these two days of bad weather. 

The Monica depression surprised residents of the south of France this weekend. In the space of a few hours, the rivers overflowed and caused widespread damage. Four people lost their lives in accidents linked to extreme weather phenomena. As of Sunday evening, four people were still missing.

A heavy human toll

Sunday afternoon, a 62-year-old man in Gagnières and two other bodies in Gouadargues were found lifeless. Four people are still missing, including two children, in Gard and Ardèche.

In Charente-Maritime, while the department was placed on orange wave-submersion vigilance, an octogenarian found himself trapped by the tide. He could not be saved. 

The rivers of the south are overflowing

From Saturday, the Hérault and the Gardon were overflowing. Sunday, Vigicrues reported significant floods on the Rhône (Bouches-du-Rhône), the Cèze ( Gard) and l'Argens (Var). 

Bulletin 10/03 – 4 p.m. Vigicrues

On the Atlantic coast, the Adour and the Garonne were still in flood at the end of the weekend, as were the Charente and the Seudre. Roads closed due to flooding risks have gradually reopened. 

Thousands of homes without electricity

According to France Info, 11,550 homes were still without electricity on Sunday in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur. In the south of France, winds reached 140 km/h, enough to uproot trees and damage the electricity network. 

Snowfall in the Cévennes and the Alps has locally disrupted the power supply of certain households. Up to 40 centimeters fell in the South-East. On the Lozère side, Mont Aigoual was swept away by the blizzard on Saturday afternoon.

Hundreds of displaced people

In the Alpes-Maritimes, hundreds of preventive trips were organized as of Saturday afternoon. Three campsites were evacuated on the Nice coast, as was a Travelers area, reports BFMTV.

Occitanie and the Paca region mobilized

In Gard, 180 firefighters, including 95 reinforcements from neighboring departments, were mobilized on Sunday. Staff from Bouches-du-Rhônes, Hérault and Vaucluse lent a helping hand.

Also read: IN IMAGES, IN PICTURES. Weather alert: flood in Hérault, snowstorm in Lozère, winds at 140km/h… depression Monica hits Occitanie

To find the missing people, divers and dog teams worked all day Sunday. The Gard firefighters indicate having carried out 150 interventions on both sides of the department. 

The search for the four people had to be stopped "at nightfall. Given the situation of the watercourses, the intervention is extremely dangerous", explains the SDIS. 

Vigilance Monday

In its last bulletin Sunday afternoon, Météo France placed eight departments on flood orange alert for Monday: Yonne, Saône-et-Loire, Gironde, Charente-Maritime, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Gard, Bouches-du-Rhône and Var. 

The residents concerned must observe precautions to avoid accidents until the end of the episode, in particular staying away from school classes. #39;water, coastline and limit outdoor activities.