In a few minutes on August 16, 17 and 18, in Marseille, Saint-Etienne, Paris, Lyon or even Ajaccio, the sky was covered with large black clouds.
Waterlogged, the latter then spilled in very large quantities on the roads, sidewalks, subway corridors, homes and even hospitals.
In places, it fell in an hour, the equivalent of several months of precipitation.
Wind gusts of up to 200 km/h lifted the trees and the roofs of the houses.
Le Figaro
presents a retrospective of the past 48 hours in pictures.
Read alsoWith these enthusiasts who chase the storms
Parisians surprised by the intensity of the storm
Tuesday, August 16, 5:40 p.m.
The first drops of cold water have come to refresh the capital, which has been suffocating for several weeks.
In a few minutes, the downpour turned into torrential rain.
Then escaped from the sky in one hour more than 40 millimeters of rain, according to the statements of Météo France at the station of the park Montsouris, that is to say almost "
70% of what normally falls in a month all accumulated
".
Saint-Etienne underwater and under the ice
Wednesday, August 17, 2:30 p.m.
Violent claps of thunder accompanied by powerful gusts of wind disturbed the calm of this summer afternoon in the Loire department.
The municipalities of Saint-Étienne, La Tourette, Périgneux, Aboën, Saint-Maurice-en-Gourgois and Villars were even shaken by hailstorms.
The firefighters were called upon more than 170 times in one hour.
Road and rail traffic was very disrupted, especially between Lyon and Saint-Etienne.
The CHU did not escape the deluge.
Wind and hail rushed into the waiting room and into the heart of the pediatric building.
A torrent of muddy water then rushed down the streets of Saint-Etienne.
Marseille, Cassis, Toulon, feet in the water
Wednesday August 17, Marseille, early evening.
For the second time of the day, a storm crosses the Marseille city.
In 24 hours fell "
nearly 60 mm of water, as much as what fell between February 15 and August 16
", according to La Chaîne Météo*.
Around the Old Port, the streets were very quickly flooded, cars stopped, passers-by forced to cross the roads with their feet in the water.
The firefighters intervened 84 times, according to
Provence
.
25 kilometers from Marseille, the town of Cassis is also beset by powerful stormy rains.
In one evening, more than 70 millimeters of rain fell on the city, giving some water sports ideas.
The departments of Bouches-du-Rhône, Var and Gard and Vaucluse did not escape the torrential rains.
In Toulon, the stairs turned into a beautiful waterfall.
The deadly storm in Corsica
Thursday August 18.
In the early morning, the storm alert is urgently set up.
A powerful wind rises and violently shakes the sea and the trees of the island of beauty.
It is quickly accompanied by heavy rainfall which floods the streets and the airport of Ajaccio.
Nearly 60 assistance or rescue operations for stranded or overturned boats have been carried out, announced the maritime prefecture of the Mediterranean.
Three people including a 13-year-old girl died, 12 were injured.
45,000 homes were without electricity.
“
We are announcing a new stormy episode in the evening, we are going to prepare for the worst
”, announced the president of the executive council of Corsica, following the announcement of the arrival of the Minister of the Interior on the scene.
*The Weather Channel is a property of the Figaro group