The whole of the Basque Country has been affected by the record floods since Thursday evening, December 9. Firefighters intervened 352 times in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques and 150 people had to be evacuated. But the worst seems over, the red flood vigilance has been lowered to orange.
The prefect of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Eric Spitz, wanted to be reassuring at the start of the morning: “The hardest part is behind us. The flood peaks have passed and we have gone from red to orange. The avalanche risk has dropped from 5 to 3 and today we will have rather moderate rains which should subside in the course of the afternoon. “
A watchful eye
However, the situation remains under close surveillance, in particular on the Bec des Gaves, around Lahonce, Urt and Guiche, where it has reached an exceptional level. The Nive also remains under surveillance. It descended one meter during the night, but begins to rise again this Saturday morning. However, according to forecasts, it will not return to its record level yesterday (6.25 m in Bayonne). High tide is expected at 10:19 a.m.
Traffic remains difficult this Saturday, December 11 in the early morning. Fifty-three roads are still cut in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques. In the Basque Country, the D913 between Bidarray and Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port is still closed, as is the axis between Saint-Martin-d’Arrossa and Aldudes. The sectors of Ustaritz and the Bidache plateau and the area around Adour to Urt are also affected. The A63 Motorway, closed this Friday, December 10 from the Spanish border to Bayonne, in the south-north direction, has on the other hand reopened in the middle of the evening, but on one lane.
About fifty people relocated
In Bayonne, around fifty people had to be evacuated and relocated to hotels. About twenty residents of the towpath, on the banks of the Nive, between Bayonne and Bassussary had to be hoisted by helicopter. The prefecture and the Sdis 64 have pre-positioned additional resources on the outskirts of Bayonne. They expect to have to intervene this Saturday for pumping operations in homes. Friday, the Nive came out of its bed, submerging the roads and invading the houses, from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Bayonne. The damage is particularly important on the side of Ossès, Saint-Martin-d’Arrossa, Saint-Etienne-de-Baïgorry as well as in Cambo.