why is the rain so heavy?

In Corrèze, rivers are rising, and fields are flooded in Saône-et-Loire. Much of the country is in the rain on Monday, December 11, and it is not expected to stop, due to an atmospheric river. It is a fresh air mass loaded with water, arriving from the subtropical regions of the planet, which brings heavy rain. “These atmospheric rivers are amplified by climate change, in the sense that the air masses are warmer”explains Pierre Huat, meteorologist at Weather Solutions.

It has never rained this much in France since 1958

Water fell en masse in already waterlogged areas. On average, since 1958, it has never rained as much in France as during the months of October and November 2023. The risk of flooding is accentuated by another phenomenon. In the mountains, with the mild weather and the rain, the snow melted and ran into the waterways. In the Alps, the Isère and Arve rivers are monitored. Nine departments are on orange alert for floods.