Flood forecasting service

Service in charge of predicting hazardous situations caused by heavy floods, in partnership with Météo-France. The flood forecasting Service (SPC) warns the Prefect in case of alarm and prepares the information to be disseminated to the mayors. The Civil Protection Service of the prefecture is in turn responsible for alerting the mayors by suitable means and providing them with the information developed by the flood forecasting service. It works in collaboration with the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service and the national police and gendarmerie. Flood forecasting encounters two possible situations. In the case of large plain rivers with slow flood regime, the flood event is no surprise even if it can be very long and cause considerable damage. Its high predictability (several hours to several days) allows time for preparedness. Conversely, flood warning in case of flash floods, fast and sometimes devastating, in small streams with steep slopes or located immediately downstream of mountains, is much more difficult due to the short time forecast (less than an hour).