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Orange Flood Alerts Expanded to Four Departments in Southeast France

Forecasters warn of brief but intense downpours today in the Rhône Valley and on the Côte d’Azur, with a sharp nationwide cooldown expected early next week.

Overview

  • Ardèche, Drôme, Isère and Alpes-Maritimes are under orange vigilance for heavy rain and flooding, with MétéoFrance citing high runoff risk in a short time window.
  • Expected totals range from 50 to 80 mm in a few hours in the Rhône corridor to 80–120 mm on the Alpes‑Maritimes coast and foothills, with local peaks near 150 mm.
  • The most active phase is forecast Sunday morning into midday before shifting toward the Alps; Nice has closed parks, beaches and the coastal path and urged limited travel.
  • A violent southerly wind episode late week brought gusts near 200 km/h in the Pyrénées, downed trees, power outages, a nine‑hectare vegetation fire and rail disruptions.
  • A polar air mass early next week should drop temperatures by 10–20°C with widespread morning frosts, mountain snow and occasional low‑elevation flurries, though not a prolonged cold wave.