Photos: exceptional storm floods Antibes streets

The town of Antibes Juan-les-Pins, in south-eastern France, flooded yesterday evening (February 3) after a storm brought three weeks’ worth of rain in just four hours. 

Locals took to social media to share images and videos of the continuous rainfall, lightning, and hailstones which caused streets to quickly fill with water, particularly in the west and centre of the town. 

Some 86 litres of rain per square metre fell between 19:00 and 23:00 across the affected area in the Alpes-Maritimes department, reported La Chaine Météo. 

The ‘stationary’ storm is said to have been caused by humid air rising from the Mediterranean. 

“A violent stationary storm is currently pouring down on Antibes Juan-les-Pins, causing significant urban flooding. For your safety, avoid travelling and stay away from waterways. Please be careful,” read a message posted by the town’s mairie at approximately 21:00 last night. 

In a later update, residents were warned not to use vehicles under any circumstances as several roads, including the RN7, were completely flooded. 

Several power cuts were reported and street lights and several traffic lights in the town were temporarily out of service.

Around 23:30 a further post announced that the rain had ceased. 

“No major damage to public property has been reported, except for a few rubbish bins carried away by the water” and some flooded basements, stated the mairie.

The mairie also confirmed that the Brague river did not burst its banks and no rescue missions were necessary.

This morning (February 4), a mini digger was required to clear the mounds of hail from the streets. 

The Alpes-Maritimes department remains on low-level yellow alert for thunderstorms today, however persistent stormy weather will continue to affect the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur coastline, states Météo-France.

Exceptional flooding 

Up to 123mm of hailstones 

Lightning strikes