Louvre closed for flood prevention Friday June 3
 

The Louvre will be closed tomorrow June 3rd to permit the removal of a number of items in its basement reserves. This is a precautionary measure due to the Seine being at flood stage.

The Orsay closed early today for a complete review of the security of its underground levels. There is a possibility that it might be closed tomorrow as well.

The RER C was closed in Paris today due to flooding. There will a bus service replacing it until further notice. However, if any of you want to go to Versailles over the next few days, I recommend taking the train to Versailles-Rive Droite from Saint Lazare.

Good advice, Kerouac.
The water is going to rise for a few more days.
The city is preparing to block off certain Metro stations with flood barriers, so it would be wise to check the ratp.fr website for updates.

Hah! I read this as Louvre closed for food prevention, and thought...HUH?

Duh. It's still rainy and soaking wet all over here. The canoë and kayak companies are already counting their lost sous.

It's crazy weather in some areas. Poor Southern Germany has taken a real hit as well. Hope the rain stops so the water can recede again.

I remember seeing high water marks from previous floods on an old building on the left bank of the Seine and thinking "Can't happen again! Modern engineering!"

Stupid me!

When Hurricane Sandy hit, cars were floating down both Avenue C and 20th Street in Manhattan.

The reference in Paris is the flood of 1910 and that is far from attained so far.

Heard this on NPR today. Texas has some horrible flooding today, three soldiers killed and six missing. High water and flooding are nothing to mess with. Take care.

Wow, thanks, K. Unprecedented?

Any idea when it's predicted to crest? I know it depends on the rains upstream.

My husband and daughter have tickets to Festival Django on a low little island off Samois Bas, downstream, three weeks from now. I'd assume, especially with the pre paid international crowd that shows up, that the festival people have a venue plan B.

The water in Paris should crest this weekend... maybe.

If you look at kerouac's photos, you'll see that the water is still far from topping the retaining walls, and so far the bridges are not under water.

The only time you're likely to be wading in water is if you're standing too close to the curb and get splashed by a delivery truck, like I did.

<i>The reference in Paris is the flood of 1910 and that is far from attained so far.</i>

I believe that the rain totals have indeed exceeded those of 1910. Paris has not flooded because of measures taken by city engineers in the years since.

One report I saw estimated that the Seine will crest today at noon. However, next week´s forecast is for more rain.

The story continues.

According to French newspapers, the highest level of the Seine is expected Friday noon.

We were in Paris one year when the Seine also flooded--not this bad, but the boats could not get under the bridges.

The Louvre spent the night emptying the Islamic arts section.

http://imageshack.com/a/img921/9143/MWkmtd.jpg

More views of the Seine here: http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...r-paris?page=1

France 24 just announced the closing of the Orsay until Tuesday but there's no confirmation yet on Paris.fr vigilance crue.

Amazing. Crazy good report on apias, Kerouac.

Here's Samois Bas near the festival site. Not going to be dry anytime soon:

http://on.aol.com/video/roads-impass...:1455073420585

No oroblem.. If Mona Lisa is damaged, we will replace it with a portrait of 'Moaning Kardashian', by Leonardo DaCaitlyn Schwartz.

Looks like everything will be back to normal by the end of next week. Let's thank the Muslims for being merciful.

kerouac, just remember to have this all clear up by October. I still owe you a bottle of wine for those classic Bombay movies during my fun near-death thing.

((H))

The water has dropped 20cm since yesterday. Of course this means that places like Rouen are now flooding.

My son and I are planning on traveling to CDG rent a car and drive to the Bayeaux in 2 weeks. We had hoped to visit Paris for 5 days too, but wonder if the Louvre and D'Orsay, and everything else affect by the floods and transportation strikes, will have recovered by then. I know you don't have a crystal ball to predict, but given past strikes and floods, how quickly do you expect things to go back to normal or near normal. Our hotel in near Tour Montparnasse. Is that area affected by the floods? We have a small window of opportunity to change plans and head to a warmer and drier location. The weather situation doesn't seem like it'll clear up anytime soon. Any advice or travel wisdom from more seasoned travelers will be greatly appreciated.

There are no flood waters in Paris. The Louvre reopens today except for the Islamic arts department whose items had not yet been put back in place.

Hot any sunny at the moment.

The Tour Montparnasse is on "Mount Parnassus," high and dry no matter what, lachicana. Have a fun trip with your son.

The Festival Django has relocated from soggy Samois to the Château Fontainebleau grounds. Parking will be problematic, but this year you can pre-reserve on a bus back to Paris after the shows. My husband and daughter will if all goes well be situated nearby, and this year will bring their bicycles inside at night.

Looking forward to another interesting trip report Stokebailey. I throughly enjoyed the last one.

So kind, Mathieu! I have itchy feet for another trip.

I love this site. So helpful. We have decided to stay on track and visit Paris. My 17 year old son and I will rent a car at CDG and drive to Tracy-sur-Mer. I'm nervous about being able to read road signs etc. I will stick to the A highways for going out and if my confidence grows, I may take the N and D roads back to CDG with a lunch stop at Giverny. That's the plan for now. Any thoughts on A vs N & D roads for a non-French speaking and timid driver? We speak English, Spanish, German, and some Arabic, but sadly not French. I am not pressed for time, I am more worried about being able to read traffic signs. I'll have a GPS so getting lost is not a fear either and find that the best adventures happen when you get lost anyway. Also, the Michelin maps note "dangerous stretch of road." What does that mean? What danger are they warning against? They don't say! We'll take the Air France bus from CDG to Montparnasse after we return the car so parking is not an issue for us in Paris. Thank you stokebailey for pointing out that Montparnassee is on high ground, very helpful for this nervous mom.