Guadeloupe requests recognition of the state of natural disaster – The HuffPost

CARLA BERNHARDT / AFP Mud and debris on a beach in Basse Terre, after storm Fiona passed through Guadeloupe on September 17. CARLA BERNHARDT / AFP Mud and debris on a beach in Basse Terre, after storm Fiona passed through Guadeloupe on September 17. GUADELOUPE – Torrential rains and major flooding. After 24 hours of red vigilance and the passage of tropical storm Fiona, Guadeloupe has returned to orange for “heavy rains and thunderstorms”, according to a bulletin published by Météo France this Sunday, September 18 at 5:16 p.m. (11:16 p.m. Saturday time). from Paris). “The flood of the Pères river took away a dwelling in Basse-Terre”, the capital of Guadeloupe, “and its occupant (…) was found dead”, indicated the prefect of the Guadeloupe region, Alexandre Rochette, in a press release. If the weather is heading for the better, the “heavy or even stormy precipitation continues in the evening”, underline the forecasters, in particular for Basse-Terre, already very affected by the torrential rains of the storm since Friday. The west coast of Basse-Terre and the Saintes archipelago also remain on orange alert “waves-submersion”, according to Météo France. The equivalent of several months of rain in 6 hours Rises of water having reached 1m50 in places, cut roads, landslides … “Several municipalities are in a situation of desolation”, noted Saturday in a press release the president of the Departmental Council Guy Losbar, requesting “recognition of the state of natural disaster”. In this archipelago of the Lesser Antilles very concerned by climate change, the state of natural disaster had already been recognized in May for several municipalities affected at the end of April by floods which had killed one person. The sixth tropical system of the season in the Atlantic, storm Fiona, which formed Thursday in the center of the ocean, was heading northwest on Saturday evening, towards Puerto Rico, after crossing the archipelago. Guadeloupean. The two main islands making up Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre and Basse-Terre, are separated by a narrow arm of the sea. On the most affected, “accumulations of more than 300 mm in six hours have already been recorded”, specified Météo -France in its Saturday morning bulletin, the equivalent of several months of rain. “The rivers overflowed in Baillif, Basse-Terre and Vieux-Habitants and led to evacuations and sheltering in communal facilities for around fifty people”, specified the prefect. It is “in the South Basse-Terre” that the relief interventions were concentrated, declared to AFP the commander of the fire brigade, Félix Anthénor-Habazac on Saturday morning. By midday, its teams had received 1,011 calls, carried out 180 interventions and rescued 26 people. Air traffic is gradually resuming According to the prefecture, 10,000 users remained without electricity on Saturday at midday and many relay antennas of the Orange telephone network were unavailable as well as several water production plants. CARLA BERNHARDT / AFP Workers clean a road in Basse Terre, after the passage of storm Fiona on September 17. CARLA BERNHARDT / AFP Workers clean a road in Basse Terre, after the passage of storm Fiona on September 17. “Given the weather situation, the general tests of the September session of CAP initially scheduled for Monday are postponed,” the academy announced in a press release. An organization has been set up to support students. Hot meals were thus distributed in university residences affected by power cuts, announced the Regional Center for University and School Works (Crous). However, the prefect announced the gradual resumption of air traffic, “from 3:30 p.m. local time. The authorities have also authorized the resumption of travel for agents and employees of companies “essential to the life of the population”. All the activities of the weekend – sports competitions or Heritage Days… – had been canceled or postponed, and all the stores were closed, pending the end of the meteorological event, envisaged on Sunday morning. See also on The HuffPost: You cannot view this content because you have refused the cookies associated with content from third parties. If you want to view this content, you can change your choices.