“When it comes to flooding, habit is the enemy of safety” note the elected representatives of Bagnolais, on alert about the major risks

In the event of a major risk, the mayor of Bagnols and his two deputies set up a crisis unit. C.B.

In the event of flooding of the Cèze, like the weekend of March 9 and 10, the town of Bagnols-sur-Cèze puts in place a whole protocol and the teams mobilize day and night. 

"Sunday March 10, around 6 p.m., the Cèze rose to 8.69 meters. This is the first time it has been so high since 2014, when it reached 8.41 meters"  recalls Jean-Christian Rey, municipal deputy of Bagnols-sur-Cèze delegate for major risks, "a subject on which I have worked a lot, we developed our Municipal Safeguarding Plan (PCS)", which defines prevention and relief measures taken to deal with a crisis situation, such as floods, snow episodes, fires, nuclear risks or even dangerous products .

The municipal team thus has at its disposal an updated document on which all the risks and protocols to follow are listed. To be ready on the big day, throughout the year, the equipment used – generator, barriers, tape, salt spreader… is verified.

"Crisis always happens on weekends, at night, on public holidays!"

Fruit of chance, "the rule is that crises always happen on a weekend, a public holiday, or at night!&quot ; observes the elected official, and in the territory of Gard rhodanien, of which he presides over the agglomeration, the most frequent risks are floods and the flooding that follows.  "As soon as something happens, we mobilize" underlines the mayor of Bagnols-sur-Cèze Jean-Yves Chapelet, in collaboration with his deputy for major risks Jean-Christian Rey, and his deputy for security Christian Baume.

"We have several tools to deal with a risk, beyond the PCS. We subscribe to Predict (risk prevention and management company), which gives a more precise vision of our sector: we know how water circulates , in what direction, the accumulations in millimeters… I have a permanent watch. When there is a problem, we take stock with them" explains the deputy in charge of major risks. In the event of flood phenomena, "I look at Vigicrues. We know that when the water rises at the Tharaux and Montclus stations, we have between 4 and 6-7 hours before it arrives in Bagnols. Last weekend, it went up very quickly.

Thanks to the Predict system, elected officials can follow the evolution of the situation. C.B.

Crisis unit in the mayor's office

This time, the first worrying signals were spotted by elected officials in Bagnolais on the afternoon of Friday March 8, two days before the flood, because a week earlier, "the Cèze had risen and had not descended to its level… and the ground was saturated. In addition to the elected official and the on-call technical agent, like every weekend, others are then placed on pre-on-call. "We are preparing a rotation of staff and elected officials just in case. And a city service provider comes to preventively clean the places where things can get clogged" specifies the mayor of Bagnols-sur-Cèze.

From hour to hour, developments in the situation are monitored very closely. And when it becomes serious upstream, as was the case on the night of Saturday March 9, a crisis unit is created at city hall.  The mayor's office becomes the HQ of the system , teams take turns to monitor and clean day and night.

Elected officials have a map on which the risks and impacted sectors are listed. C.B.  

Residents of the Cèze, whose homes are at risk of being flooded, are called via the Cedralis system.  "We run a campaign once a year to have the telephone numbers of residents who may be affected by a major risk. But some people don't think about it".

"Nothing beats being on the ground"

But the mayor and his deputies are convinced of it, "nothing replaces observation in the field, even at night. We take photos for feedback. When this time, we understood that it was going to exceed 7 meters, we rang people's houses on Chemin de la Tour at 3 a.m. to tell them to get ready". Teams are checking that no one has been forgotten on the banks of the Cèze where "people can sleep in trucks or in tents&amp ;quot;.

"Each flood is particular and there are more and more of them. In Bagnols, there are different actions to take depending on whether the Cèze rises to more than 7 meters or not. We know that less than 7 meters, we must block off the low points of the city, more than 7 meters, homes are affected". And sometimes "there is a gap of one meter between reality and what we see on Vigicrues".

On March 10, "we were on the verge of blocking Avenue de l’Europe. 30 cm more or less, that changes everything. When it comes to flooding, we must be modest, we must banish certainties. Habit is the enemy of security" understood the elected official responsible for major risks.

The Carmignan footbridge, submersible, closed by fixed barriers

When the Cèze rises, the Carmignan footbridge, submersible, is closed as was the case previously. the case Saturday March 9 in the evening.  "There are fixed barriers that are locked. We put up signs announcing that the road is blocked and depending on the situation, we add additional barriers and diversions. We must close the gateway in a time as close as possible to reality. of the flood, otherwise, there are people who see that there is nothing, and who pass anyway, they break the padlocks" deplores Jean-Christian Rey.

"We signedé an agreement with the Department. The city is responsible for closing the footbridge. The Department to open it. The procedures are clear" explains Mayor Jean-Yves Chapelet.

An information document on major risks and emergency actions

Document.Bagnolais can consult the Dicrim (municipal information document on major risks) on the city website, which comes from the Municipal Safeguarding Plan. This document presents the risks in the area, recalls the safety instructions to be followed, the means of alert provided by the municipality, the emergency numbers and the steps to follow if such a situation arises in the municipality. The Gard Rhone agglomeration finances the municipal PPS and the subscription to Predict.

Floods. The Cèze rose to 8.69 meters on March 10 in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, but it’s less than the flood of September 8 and 9, 2002. The water had then reached 11.20 meters. In September and October 1958, the Cèze had exceeded 10 meters in Bagnols. "There are a lot of floods less than 7.5 meters" the elected official in charge of major risks was able to observe over the years.

Evacuation. If this time, the weekend of March 9 and 10, the Genêts d’or campsite is not ;did not have to be evacuated – there were no vacationers-, the case was very different on August 9, 2018, in the middle of the summer period, "there had been 6.5 meters in Montclus and 5 .5 meters at the Genêts d’or campsite in Bagnols. It had been flooded and we had to evacuate 400 campers" explains Jean-Christian Rey.

Accommodation. The weekend of March 9 and 10, when the water of the Cèze rose, as with every risk major, the city's crisis unit began to prepare the consequences: opening a room – that of the Eyrieux – to accommodate disaster victims, mobilize the central kitchen which can provide around a hundred meals…

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