Northern France hit by flooding

Authorities in northern France issued red alerts as floods described as "exceptional" hit a number of towns in the region, leading to severe road disruptions and school closures, with warnings remaining in place on Wednesday.

Up to 60 towns were affected by heavy rainfall on Tuesday, resulting in top-level flood alerts for the Aa and the Liane rivers, both of which had previously burst their banks last week due to Storm Ciaran and Storm Domingos.

In a social media post, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin reported seven injuries and the mobilization of more than 1,500 firefighters in the region.

An alert in the Pas-de-Calais department, in the Hauts-de-France region, was reduced from a tier-four red to a tier-three orange alert by the national meteorological service Meteo France on Tuesday evening, though residents were still being advised to remain cautious.

The two rivers run through some main towns in the department, such as Boulogne-sur-Mer and Saint-Omer.

French news website Connexion reported that a number of other rivers in the department are either on tier-three orange or tier-two yellow warnings due to high water levels.

Floods have caused "significant "damage in many northern municipalities, said regional authorities, adding that dozens of schools have been closed.

Official river flooding watchdog Vigicrues described Tuesday's floods as "exceptional", reported Agence France-Presse. It added that the floods had surpassed the historic levels of 2002, the previous benchmark for river levels in the department. Some rivers could be on a red alert for flooding until at least Wednesday evening, it said.

The watchdog's website said the Liane's water level could rise up to 560 centimeters above its normal level, nearly a meter above its previous record high of 481 cm.

The flooding was expected to spread downstream to Wizernes, where widespread and very damaging overflows were likely, said Vigicrues.

In Blendecques, a town previously struck by flooding last year, locals are now assessing the damage.

A local resident told AFP there was nothing that could be done to prevent the flooding.

"Everything has to be repaired again," said Ludovic Provence. "We can't do anything against the water."

The vice-president of the Hauts-de-France region, Franck Dhersin, was cited by Connexion saying that officials were "very worried" the flooding could worsen throughout the week.

"The rains have been accumulating for over 20 days, the soils are soaked, they can no longer absorb anything," said Dhersin.

The mayor of Maresville, Maxime Delianne, in the Pas-de-Calais department described the situation as a "catastrophe" on Monday evening, before another intense spell of heavy rain struck the area overnight. The Dordonne, a small river, which crosses the town, "completely flooded the village", he said.

Other departments in the west of France, including the Dordogne, Charente, and Gironde, are also still facing tier-three orange warnings due to river flooding, as a consequence of last week's storms, agencies reported.