Severe damage caused by floods in Belgium, France and Germany

Widespread localised flooding caused by slow moving thunderstorms with high precipitation associated with surface lows named Elvira and Friederike has impacted communities in Belgium, north-central France and Germany, according to catastrophe modelling firm AIR Worldwide.

Some areas in central France received up to 16 inches of rain over the 10-day period ending June 5, amounting to as much as 60 percent of the average annual precipitation, said the firm.

Bernhard Reinhardt, senior client services associate of AIR Worldwide, commented: “Unlike the 2002 and 2013 floods, major rivers in Germany did not reach flood stage, but smaller rivers, such as the Kocher, Jagst, Ahr, and Wupper, as well as many small lesser-known creeks, went from below average to flood levels within hours.

“Many areas of Germany outside floodplains experienced flash flooding. Severe damage has been reported in the towns of Braunsbach, Schwäbisch Gmünd, Simbach am Inn, Triftern, and Tann.”

Early this week, Belgium, northern Antwerp and the west of Flanders were hit with extensive flooding, with waters rising in Limburg and Liege where several neighbourhoods had to be evacuated. The Brussels-Limburg train service was suspended temporarily on the morning of June 2.

Localised floods had also been reported in Austria, Poland, and the Netherlands.

Reinhardt continued: “In France, the largest losses occurred in the Loiret region and along the Seine. According to France’s national weather service, Méteo France, Paris experienced its wettest May since 1873.

“Hardest hit last month were Paris and environs, the Loire Valley, and Picardy. In Paris the Seine overflowed its banks on Thursday, June 2, prompting President François Hollande to declare l’état de catastrophe naturelle or a “state of natural disaster” in Paris.”

More than 24,000 homes lost power in the Paris and Loiret regions, and several thousand of them are still without it.

The flooding in Paris had disrupted rail transportation, including some of the main commuter lines, compounding service interruption caused by strikes that had left only a fraction of France’s trains running when the flooding began.

Tourist boat cruises were also halted, and roads leading into Paris and within the capital were flooded, which worsened travel conditions.

Both the Louvre museum and the Musée d’Orsay closed their doors to the public on Friday, June 3. The Louvre moved 150,000 artworks to safety and reopened on Wednesday, June 8, but the Musée d’Orsay has not set a date for reopening yet.

The Seine crested at 6.1 meters (20 feet) above normal on Saturday June 4, the highest level since 1982 when it reached 6.18 meters, but short of the record level set in 1910 of 8.62 metres.

Nemours, a commune that borders the department of Loiret, the waters of the Loing River, a tributary of the Seine, surpassed 1910 flood levels, causing 3,000 out of a total 13,000 inhabitants to be evacuated.

Hundreds of towns and villages were hit by the flooding in France, with many in central France experiencing the worst flooding since 1910 causing about 2,000 to be evacuated across the area, in addition to the 3,000 in Nemours.

Of all natural hazards that cause property damage in Europe, flood is the most costly according to AIR. It said flooding is a regular occurrence, with one not limited to the coast or low-lying river valleys, but nearly ubiquitous due to off-floodplain flash flooding.