Floods in New Aquitaine: almost general decline except in Charente-Maritime

New Aquitaine affected by floods in recent days experienced an almost general decline on Saturday.

According to the prefectures, the situation is improving in most departments and in particular in Lot-et-Garonne visited on Friday by Prime Minister Jean Castex.

The only exception is Charente-Maritime where the water continues to rise slowly, especially in the Saintes sector.

A "peak plateau" is expected Monday. 

Water will continue to rise in Charente-Maritime

In Charente-Maritime, where the waters continue to rise slowly, "under surveillance", of the Charente and the Boutonne in orange vigilance, some 190 people were evacuated as a precaution from their homes.

In Saintes, the waters of the Charente reached 6 meters at midday, flooding the banks.

This flood, however, remains far from the historical record of 1982 at 6.84 meters.

Saturday morning, a disaster victim in the city assured: "We know that it can flood, so we have to do with it. It rises slowly. We will plan, we will raise the furniture, everything will be fine."

"I've been very scared for three days, then I called the fire department because I had no solution. I can go out on my own. He's my husband, he's very disabled," added Mamy for his part. in the process of being evacuated.

Streets have been closed, less than a hundred households deprived of electricity but "the general accessibility of the town is not questioned" and the station, shopping centers, bridges, administrations, etc., remain functional.

92 detainees from the remand center were transferred to other establishments on Friday in order to anticipate possible difficulties of access.

"We know that the Charente will rise by 30 cm this weekend and reach 6.3 m on Monday", according to the prefecture to AFP, "the weather should be milder from Tuesday, the recession could begin".

To the east of the department, near Boutonne, some of the 7,500 inhabitants of Saint-Jean-d'Angély left their homes as a precaution.

Some 200 firefighters, gendarmes and police officers remain deployed on the ground, including reinforcements coming from Creuse, Corrèze, Vienne and Haute-Vienne.

Spectacular decline in Lot-et-Garonne

In Charente, the hour was on the decline.

A few people were evacuated as a precaution here and there in the department, a few homes without electricity or gas but no massive damage was recorded.

The water forms a persistent "plateau" in Jarnac and Cognac but the rains which continue to fall should not however have any consequences on this sector, according to the prefecture.

In the Landes, a department also recently hit by flooding, the Adour sector around Dax still remained orange, but there too was a decline.

In Lot-et-Garonne, especially in Marmande where the Prime Minister went on Friday in support of the victims, the time was at a spectacular decline.

The Garonne rose to some 5 meters on Saturday against 10 meters two days earlier.

A sector around Nérac is nevertheless returned to yellow vigilance after being returned to green but the expected overflows "should remain small", according to Vigicrues.