THUNDERSTORMS. The balance sheet continues to increase with the violent storms which hit Corsica this morning, at least five dead and twelve wounded are counted. The island is no longer on orange alert but after the stormy episode, Minister Gérald Darmanin is expected on site this afternoon.
The essential
- The orange vigilance for thunderstorms was lifted at 11 a.m. this Thursday, August 18, 2022 in Corsica after two hours of stormy rains and violent gusts. Only the Pyrénées-Atlantiques are still placed on orange alert for rain and flooding until this evening by Météo France.
- The storms in Corsica left at least five dead and twelve injured, including one person in absolute emergency.
- After the violent storm that hit Corsica, the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, is expected on the island this Thursday afternoon. He and the Prime Minister expressed their support for the victims of the bad weather.
- In Corsica, the gusts of wind exceeded 200 km / h and reached historic records as in Calvi. The stormy episode has now left the island. In the Basque country, it is the torrential rains and the risk of flooding expected until this evening that are worrying.
- Stormy showers are still in place over the eastern half of France, particularly in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, but without reaching the intensity levels of the previous day.
- Follow the latest weather forecast in this live.
Live
3:19 p.m. – Calm before the return of heavy rains in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques
In the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, the only department still on orange alert in the face of rains and floods, the time has been calm since the end of the morning and at the start of the afternoon, but according to Météo-France it is to be expected when the showers return at the end of the day. The precipitation will however be less important than that of the night and this morning. Vigilance should be lifted in the early evening.
3:00 p.m. – The toll of storms in Corsica rises to five dead
The toll of the stormy storm in Corsica continues to increase and rises to five dead according to information from the maritime prefecture. The number of injured is unchanged with twelve victims.
14:39 – The gusts of wind fell in Corsica
Corsica was swept by the winds and gusts of more than 200 km / h locally but since the lifting of the orange vigilance the wind has died down according to Météo France even if gusts of 80 km / h are still observed around Cape Town Corsica. They should weaken during the day according to forecasts.
14:17 – A new stormy episode in Corsica tonight?
The president of the executive council of Corsica, Gilles Simeoni indicated that a new storm was expected on the island of beauty in the evening at the end of the morning on BFM TV “We are announcing a new stormy episode in the evening, we are going to prepare for the worst,” he said after seeing the violence of the storm this morning.
13:54 – Up to 45,000 homes without electricity in Corsica this morning
The storms got the better of part of the electrical installations in Corsica, depriving many homes of electricity, in particular “north of the Ajaccio / Bastia axis” according to statements by the EDF communication department in Corsica to the local branch. of France 3. “At the height of the event, this morning, nearly 45,000 customers were cut off” mainly in the northwest of the island.
1:20 p.m. – Two deaths in campsites during storms in Corsica
Of the three people who died during the storms in Corsica, two were in campsites: the 13-year-old girl who was staying in an establishment in Sagone and a 46-year-old man who was in a campsite in Calvi. The third victim was on a beach during the tragedy. Other tourists are among the victims, including the seriously injured person who is a 23-year-old Italian and who is still in absolute emergency according to the Haute-Corse prefecture.
13:05 – Emmanuel Macron sent his support to the President of Corsica
Gilles Simeoni, president of the executive council of Corsica indicated on the antenna of BFM TV having received a call from Emmanuel Macron after the violent and unexpected storms in Corsica this morning. The Head of State sent his support to the local elected official, promising on behalf of the State to do what is necessary for the victims and after this exceptional situation.
12:50 – Winds at 220 km / h, torrential rains .. Images of thunderstorms in Corsica
If the storm is over in Corsica, the images of the stormy winds observed this morning are impressive. BFM TV has compiled just here amateur images of bad weather which shows the violence of the storm.
12:34 – Interventions at sea after the storms in Corsica
At the end of the morning, more than 60 assistance and rescue operations were coordinated by the rescue services, particularly at sea. This morning when the storm broke out, several people were at sea and reports of stranded or overturned boats were recorded. . These interventions continue at midday.
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12:23 – The Prime Minister sends her support to the victims of the storms in Corsica
Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne also expressed her support on Twitter after the violent storms that hit Corsica this morning. “My thoughts are with the victims, their loved ones and the entire population hard hit by the bad weather in Corsica. Everything is being done to help the victims,” she added.
12:11 – Gérald Darmanin will travel to Corsica this afternoon
In a tweet, the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin announced his arrival in Corsica after the stormy episode which hit the island this morning.
I give all my support to the Corsicans who faced violent storms, with gusts of wind at more than 200 km / h. There are already three people dead and several injured. Significant resources are committed. I will be there this afternoon.
— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) August 18, 2022
11:48 – Three dead in thunderstorms in Corsica according to the prefecture
While the storms calm down in Corsica, the human toll continues to increase. The island’s prefecture announced the death of a third person but indicates that no new injuries have been counted.
11:39 – 20,000 lightning strikes recorded in yesterday’s thunderstorms
France was hit 20,000 times by lightning during the day of August 17, marked by violent storms in the south-east, the Rhône valley and the north-west of the country. A quarter of these impacts, ie 5,000 lightning strikes, occurred only in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region.
11:28 – Why was orange vigilance decided late in Corsica?
Until 9 a.m. this morning, Corsica was placed on yellow vigilance for thunderstorms, but according to several testimonies, violent gusts of wind and stormy rains were observed from 8 a.m. by the inhabitants of the island. If the reassessment of the alert has been delayed, it is because the trajectory of the disturbance has changed slightly compared to the forecasts of the institutes. The storm was initially supposed to pass between Corsica and the mainland but shifted towards the south and the island of beauty.
11:15 – The toll is growing: two dead and twelve injured
The new provisional assessment signed by the prefecture of Corsica shows two deaths, that of a 13-year-old girl in the Sagone campsite and a 72-year-old woman on a beach. The two victims lost their lives due to falling trees caused by gusts of wind. Twelve other people were injured, one of whom was placed in an absolute emergency.
Learn more
There are only three departments left to be placed on orange vigilance for thunderstorms this Thursday, August 18, 2022: Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Haute-Corse and Corse-du-Sud. In these territories, rainfall is torrential and leads to the risk of flooding, particularly in the Basque country. In Corsica, more than the floods, it is the winds and gusts of more than 200 km/h in places that raise fears of damage. Elsewhere, thundery showers are still in place in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes but more widely than the eastern half of the country. Still, the rains are less violent than those of the day before. In Corsica, Météo France believes that orange vigilance decided at the last minute is required until the end of the morning.
The Pyrénées-Atlantiques are the only department to be plagued by possible floods on August 18. Yesterday several floods and mudslides were observed in the territories on orange alert, in particular the Bouches-du-Rhône, the Hérault and the Rhône valley. The images of the runoff are impressive, like those of the Old Port of Marseille or between Saint-Etienne and Lyon, where rail traffic was interrupted because of the water. 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 left at least five dead and twelve injured in less than two hours according to the prefecture, the toll is still provisional but already heavy. Several people lost their lives due to falling trees in campsites and on a beach, among them a 13-year-old girl, a 46-year-old man and a 72-year-old woman. The day before, August 17, no victims were to be deplored in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur or in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and in the departments which were on orange alert. However, significant material damage was observed in the Rhône valley and in Corsica. Storms and floods also deprived thousands of homes of electricity, 1,000 in Corsica and 10,000 in Ain and Loire.
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.