THUNDERSTORMS. Corsica spent the night under storms and is still waking up under orange vigilance for storms and rain-flooding. The alert could be lifted in the middle of the morning when the weather is calm with thunderstorms present but less active this Friday August 19.
The essential
- Storms in Corsica raged all night from Thursday to Friday on “the western half of Corsica and Cap Corse” but also “the eastern coast” announced Météo-France. This Friday, August 19, the island is still placed in orange vigilance at least until 10 a.m.
- This morning, Corsica is enjoying a “relative calm” with only “10/15 mm over the last 3 hours” but the meteorological institute warns that “active storms are still forming at sea”.
- Storms in Corsica killed five people and injured around twenty, four of them in absolute emergency according to the latest provisional report. As a precaution, several Corsican campsites have been evacuated and rehoused in permanent buildings such as gymnasiums.
- The Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, has traveled to Corsica and must go to a campsite in Calvi where victims have been found. The government expressed its support for the island after the storms and an interministerial crisis unit was chaired by Emmanuel Macron last night.
- Follow the evolution of storms in Corsica live.
Live
08:29 – The provisional report shows 5 dead and 20 injured in the storms in Corsica
After a night of storms, the human toll remains unchanged in Corsica but is already heavy with five dead and twenty injured, four of whom are in a state of absolute emergency. The toll was confirmed last night by Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin after the erroneous announcement of a sixth death. Of the five victims, three lost their lives to falling trees and two were found at sea.
08:22 – What is the weather this Friday morning in Corsica?
The storms of the night were lasting but less violent than that of the morning of August 18 and this morning, despite the orange vigilance, the storms are less intense. “Storms continue to form at sea and will shift over Corsica at the start of Friday. These storms can be locally active, can give significant electrical activity, high rainfall intensities, from 40 to 60 mm in a short time. weather, hail and strong gusts of wind close to 80 km / h”, however details Météo France, which adds that the coastal areas, western and eastern, are more exposed.
08:21 – A night under storms but “calmer”
Several testimonies explain that the night from Thursday to Friday was calmer in Corsica despite the orange vigilance. The storms hit hard for two hours, between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m., but were without comparison with the bad weather on the morning of August 18 according to Gilles Simeoni, president of the executive council of Corsica contacted by France info.
08:16 – Corsica still on orange alert this morning
In Corsica, the awakening was done in the rain and storms this Friday, August 19 after a night spent in storms. The island of beauty is still placed in orange vigilance this morning and at least until 10 a.m. according to Météo-France forecasts. The bad weather is still visible but is slowly receding and should leave Corsica at midday.
Learn more
Corsica is the last region to be placed on orange vigilance for thunderstorms this Friday August 19, 2022. After the stormy episode of yesterday morning and the less violent but more lasting one of the night, the alert is maintained at least until 10 o’clock this morning. Météo France, however, notes a “relative calm” this morning even if “active storms are still forming at sea”.
In addition to being vigilant for thunderstorms, Corsica is also on alert for floods. The torrential rains, which are however less intense this morning, may have caused flooding and mudslides in places. The floods are the consequence of torrential rains which follow the episode of drought and run off without being able to penetrate the soil.
The storms that hit Corsica on the morning of August 18, 2022 killed at least five people and injured around twenty according to the still provisional but already heavy toll. Several people lost their lives due to falling trees: a 13-year-old girl at the Sagone campsite, a 46-year-old man at a Calvi campsite, a 72-year-old woman on the Liamone beach in Coggia, a fisherman found in Girolata and a kayaker who perished in Erbalunga. More than 125 rescue operations took place at sea on August 18, according to the maritime prefect. The toll could rise further and people are still missing at sea. The storms also caused significant material damage. The electricity network was also damaged since nearly 9,000 homes were without electricity according to EDF estimates last night against 45,000 at the height of the storms.
The images of the violent storms which hit Corsica this Thursday August 18 and the south-east of France, among others, yesterday are not lacking and show the violence of the bad weather between torrential rains and stormy gusts. The wind visible at Ajaccio airport or the flooding of the Old Port of Marseille surprised and worried residents and holidaymakers.