Montpellier's Lez river peaks as flooding eases in Hérault and Gard
The Lez river reached 4.32 metres as 25 people were moved to safety and fire crews took 1,100 calls during a red flood alert in southern France.
Update ·
Lez river peaks at 4.32 metres in Montpellier and schools to reopen Thursday as flooding eases.
All 2 updates ↓The Lez river in Montpellier peaked at 4.32 metres on Wednesday evening, having climbed from 3.92 metres earlier in the day, regional authorities said, as a red "rain-flood" alert brought torrential rain to the French départements of Hérault and Gard. Fire crews in Hérault answered 1,100 emergency calls during the day, the prefecture said.
Twenty-five people were moved to safety in Montpellier, Lunel, Triadou, Combaillaux and Saint-Gély-du-Fesc, the prefecture said, up from an earlier tally of eight, after drivers took cars onto flooded roads despite warnings. Gard prefect Fabienne Decottignies said some areas had received the equivalent of "a bathtub of water per square metre."
About 60 homes were evacuated in Lattes, near Montpellier, local radio ICI Hérault reported. Several departmental roads and low-lying bridges remained closed in Gard, rail services between Lattes and Tarascon were suspended, and a lorry crash on the A54 motorway towards Arles reduced traffic to one lane, regional radio ICI reported. Flooding also forced the evacuation of the offices of local radio station ICI Gard Lozère.
Rainfall reached 335mm at Saint-Hippolyte-du-Fort in western Gard and 299mm in the neighbouring commune of Colognac since Tuesday evening, Météo-France said. Nearly two months' worth of rain, 140 litres per square metre, had earlier fallen at Moulès-et-Baucels in Hérault, and the Hérault river rose 2.2 metres in two hours near the town of Laroque, BFMTV reported.
Météo-France placed Gard and Hérault on red alert from 8am on Wednesday, warning that the "exceptional" Mediterranean weather system could bring up to 350mm of rain to parts of the Cévennes mountains. Schools were closed in Gard and public transport suspended across much of the region as the rain, which began late on Tuesday, intensified overnight in what forecasters called the first "cévenol" episode of the season.
The prefectures of Gard and Hérault said schools would reopen on Thursday, with the exception of those affected by the heavy rain, and that school transport would also resume. Météo-France said the storm system would shift towards Provence, between Avignon and Marseille, by Thursday, with Bouches-du-Rhône already on orange alert alongside Ardèche and Lozère.
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What we know
- 1 outlet The Lez river in Montpellier peaked at 4.32 metres on Wednesday, regional authorities said.
- 1 outlet Fire crews in Hérault answered 1,100 emergency calls during the red alert, the prefecture said.
- 1 outlet Twenty-five people were moved to safety in five Hérault communes, up from an earlier tally of eight.
- 1 outlet Rainfall reached 335mm at Saint-Hippolyte-du-Fort and 299mm at Colognac in Gard since Tuesday evening, Météo-France said.
- 1 outlet Schools in Gard and Hérault will reopen on Thursday, except those affected by the rain, prefectures said.
How each fact is established: Verified checked by an ECTV editorOfficial stated by an official body2+ outlets reported independently by two or more news organisations1 outlet reported by a single news organisation so farUnconfirmed claimed or reportedHow we label facts
Why it matters for Europe
Flash flooding from Mediterranean storm systems, known in France as "cévenol" episodes, is a recurring autumn threat in the south, where warm, moist air trapped against the Cévennes mountains can drop vast amounts of rain within hours. Wednesday's alert closed schools and suspended transport across two départements home to hundreds of thousands of people.
The last comparable episode, in late December 2025, brought more than 300mm of rain to the Cévennes and 140mm to Montpellier, Météo-France said. Repeated red alerts of this kind put pressure on emergency services and infrastructure along the wider Mediterranean coast, from Languedoc to Provence.
Updates
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Lez river peaks at 4.32 metres in Montpellier and schools to reopen Thursday as flooding eases.
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About 60 homes evacuated in Lattes and eight people rescued from flooding as the red alert brings real impacts, Hérault prefecture says.
First published.
Sources
Reported by 5 reports from 5 independent outlets in 1 countries.
- BFMTV: Premier épisode méditerranéen de la saison: l'Hérault et le Gard placé en vigilance rouge "pluie-inondation"
- La Dépêche du Midi: Épisode méditerranéen : alerte rouge sur l'Hérault et le Gard, jusqu'à 350 mm de pluie prévus sur les Cévennes, risque de crues... à quoi s'attendre ce mercredi ?
- Libération: Ecoles fermées, transports suspendus... le Gard et l’Hérault en alerte rouge face à un épisode méditerranéen «exceptionnel»
- Le Progrès: Météo. « Aggravation attendue » d'un épisode de pluies-inondations « exceptionnel » dans l'Hérault et le Gard
- Actu.fr: La vigilance rouge pluie-inondation activée en France : voici les départements touchés
Source balance
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Questions and answers
- Why were Gard and Hérault put on red alert?
- Météo-France warned of an "exceptional" Mediterranean storm system that could bring up to 350mm of rain to the Cévennes mountains.
- How high did the Lez river rise in Montpellier?
- The river peaked at 4.32 metres on Wednesday evening, having risen sharply during the day, authorities said.
- When will schools reopen in the affected départements?
- Schools in Gard and Hérault are due to reopen on Thursday, except those affected by the heavy rain, prefectures said.
This article was written with AI assistance from 5 verified reports and checked under the ECTV editorial policy. Spotted an error? Request a correction.