Illustrative photo of a flock of sheep under the snow, last year in the province of Soria (Spain).

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John Milner / SOPA Images / Sipa U / SIPA

Sheep and shepherd weather took a toll on the Col du Glandon (Savoie).

About 6,000 animals are being evacuated there by trucks after being surprised by an early snowfall that fell at the end of the week in the Alps, we learned this Monday from the town hall of Saint-Colomban-des-Villards .

When more snow than expected arrived Friday evening, 7,000 animals were around the Glandon pass (1,900 m above sea level).

About 6,000 #sheep found themselves stranded at an altitude of 1900 m at the #Glandon pass, in #Savoie, where more than 50 cm of #snow fell over the weekend.

The strong #wind also created # snowdrifts, reaching 2m high!

The emergency since yesterday: feed the animals ... @LCI pic.twitter.com/gSignKW2Tp

- Guillaume Woznica (@GWoznica) September 28, 2020

A sector of mountain pastures from which the herds usually leave at the end of October.

“1,000 animals from a breeder were evacuated on Sunday.

There are 6,000 left from another breeder.

Among them, 1,000 will be evacuated this Monday and the rest in the coming days because the weather forecast is bad at the end of the week ”, indicates Christian Frasson-Botton, municipal councilor of this village of 130 inhabitants.

Unheard of in these proportions since 1974?

The town launched its safeguard plan last weekend and organized with the Savoie department the supply of animals no longer able to find grass under the heavy snow, which reaches 30 to 50 cm thick.

6 tonnes of fodder were therefore transported thanks to a track cleared with a snowplow on this road cut off from traffic.

🐑 6,000 #sheep and #Ewes surprised by the snow with their shepherd are stranded in the mountain pastures in the #Glandon pass in #Savoie.

A rescue operation is underway.

@ F3Alpes pic.twitter.com/gDcXBmsbhD

- France 3 All Regions (@ F3ToutesRegions) September 28, 2020

"It is no longer a crisis situation but it can become so again", specifies Christian Frasson-Botton.

Snow in September is seen regularly in the mountains, but such a quantity remains a “rather exceptional” event, specifies the elected official, citing 1974 as the ultimate reference year in this area.

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First heavy snowfall in the Alps

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