Floodwaters Threaten Paris, Closing Roads, Tunnels, Cellars

PARIS (AP) — Parisians remained largely unfazed Friday as the Seine River continued to rise and approach peak levels. The Paris region has been deeply affected by the floods that hit the country over the past week, but in the capital city, it was business as usual for the most part. The Seine will hit its peak soon, but without surpassing record levels, according to Vigicrues, the body in charge of monitoring flood levels. The Seine reached 5.60 meters (more than 18 feet) Friday morning at the Austerlitz bridge in eastern Paris. It was expected to keep rising, reaching a peak of six meters (20 feet) over the weekend. That's under the 6.2 meters the Seine reached two years ago, and far below the levels reached during the 1910 Great Flood, when the Seine water rose to 8.62 meters (more than 28 feet). While the 2016 floods led to the death of two people and left several injured in the Paris area, no victims have been recorded during the current episode of flooding. Fabrice and his dog Largo use a dinghy boat to reach the banks of river Seine in Paris, Thursday, Jan.25, 2018. Rivers across France kept swelling as more rain hit the country Thursday, with 15 departments across the country remaining on alert for floods. In addition to Paris, where the Seine river is expected to keep rising until Saturday, the other regions threatened are in the north and east of the country. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Paris authorities have closed several tunnels, parks, and the bottom floor of th...
Source: JEMS: Journal of Emergency Medical Services News - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Tags: Major Incidents News Source Type: news