Storm Gloria is emerging and the Pyrénées-Orientales are preparing for the worst. The department is expected to face "heavy precipitation", rain or snow depending on the altitude, announced Météo France. It was placed on the alert orange snow and ice and rain and floods and on alert yellow floods and avalanches.
"It is a strong depression, which stalls in eastern Spain, at the Balearic Islands, explained Monday at 20 minutes Roland Mazurie, the head of Météo France in Montpellier. There will be a lot of rain in the plains, and snow in abundance on the Pyrenean chain. The limit between rain and snow in the department should be around 600 meters at the start of the day, very locally and temporarily between 200 and 400 meters. It should go up to 1,400 meters at midday, and 1,600 meters in the evening.
These snowfalls can give accumulations of the order of 1 to 1.5 meters, or even 2 meters above 1,800 meters, especially towards the Canigou massif.
🌨️ Snow and heavy rain on Roussillon 🌧️
An episode of heavy precipitation is taking place in Roussillon and the eastern Pyrenees today. This active episode corresponds to overflows on our country from the storm #Gloria.
▶ ️ https://t.co/aVJkoXsNAL pic.twitter.com/p6qwawmSHE
❄️ Snow on the Canigou / Capcir in the night from Monday to Tuesday
This afternoon, the first snowfall will start on the relief of the Eastern Pyrenees; this snowfall will gradually hold from 500 m.
📸 Vernet-les-bains - @Canigo_Conflent pic.twitter.com/kxbOcpUVvG
Emergency means ready to intervene
At low altitude, large amounts of water will fall. "By Wednesday morning it is generally 90 to 120 mm of rain that is expected", and "locally 200 mm towards the Vermeille coast and the eastern foothills", warned Météo France.
The prefecture says it activated the departmental operational center on Tuesday. In terms of rescue resources, 390 firefighters were engaged, including 35 civil security soldiers and 100 came to reinforce other departments, 40 gendarmes are also on the ground and 140 are in pre-alert. The Saint-Cyprien nautical brigade and the high mountain gendarmerie platoon are also ready to intervene.
Many roads cut, transport suspended
The fords of the whole department are closed, we learned this Tuesday morning. The A9 motorway is closed in the France-Spain direction from Perpignan-Nord, as are interchanges 41, 42 and 43, and snow removal was in progress this Tuesday at 8 a.m. The Spanish AP7 motorway is closed from Figuères to the border, and the RD914 traffic is cut between Cerbère and Banyuls in both directions.
Please note that the circulation of public, school and passenger transport vehicles is interrupted Tuesday and Wednesday, in the Conflent, Haut Vallespir, Cerdagne and Capcir sectors. Transport is maintained in the other sectors.
Montpellier
Pyrénées-Orientales: An expected snow and rain storm, the department on orange alert
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