2023-11-14 13:43:40
Emmanuel Macron at the head of Pas-de-Calais. The president visited this Tuesday the department battered by several days of rain, floods and devastating floods and once again placed on orange alert for the risk of floods and rain-flooding.
In Saint-Omer, Emmanuel Macron praised the mobilization of state services, law enforcement, civil protection, local authorities and the “tremendous solidarity” of volunteers in recent days. “To our elected officials, we will not give up, you have the support of the entire nation,” he stressed.
The Head of State announced the classification of “all the municipalities which requested it” as a natural disaster. This concerns 214 municipalities in Pas-de-Calais and around thirty in the North. The list will be published in the Official Journal on Wednesday. According to the prefect of Pas-de-Calais, Jacques Billant, 5,000 homes have been affected by these “exceptional” floods and “1,400 people evacuated” since November 6. The death toll remains “four lightly injured”.
50 million euros for communities
Alongside the Minister of Agriculture, Marc Fesneau, the Minister of Ecological Transition, Christophe Béchu, and the Minister for SMEs, Olivia Grégoire, the president announces a support fund amounting to 50 million euros will be allocated to communities “to meet initial expenses”.
Concerning farmers, who are very affected, the “agricultural disaster” system, which allows aid to be released, will be activated. Another exceptional support fund will also be deployed for victims of storms in Normandy and Brittany in order to finance investments and operating losses.
“We must act as quickly as possible and learn lessons,” says Emmanuel Macron, calling for a relaxation of administrative rules to launch reconstruction. Then, Emmanuel Macron went to a farm located in Doulac, in Saint-Omer.
The risk of flooding remains high
The weather situation is not going to improve. Météo France predicts a “short-term rainy episode” with “fairly strong intensities”, requiring “particular vigilance given the saturation of the soil”. These showers will lead to “cumulative rainfall reaching 25 to 30 mm in a few hours”.
The seven rivers of the department monitored by Vigicrues are on orange flood alert: the Liane, the Lys upstream, the Lawe-Clarence, the Canche, the Lys plaine, the Hem and the Aa. “The rains this Tuesday could cause a rise in levels,” warned the information service of the risk of flooding of the main rivers in France.
Faced with this situation, by decision of the prefecture, educational establishments in 279 municipalities in the department, or 388 establishments in total, will remain closed on Tuesday, after having been closed on Monday. The floods of recent days have also caused significant damage in the neighboring department of the North, particularly on the Lys plain.
“Food donations”
According to senator and vice-president of the regional council Franck Dhersin, more than 10,000 victims have been identified and “many craftsmen, traders and SMEs/SMIs are affected”.
According to the prefecture, 1,391 evacuations have been carried out in the department since November 6 and 7,200 people experienced restrictions on the use of water. A natural disaster recognition commission for the affected municipalities of Nord and Pas-de-Calais is to be held on Tuesday. In the latter department, 207 municipalities have submitted a file, according to the prefecture.
Following these floods, the Restos du Cœur made an “urgent” appeal for “food donations” and “volunteers” to distribute the clothing, blankets and food collected.
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