The 1910 Great Flood of Paris (French : Crue de la Seine de 1910) was a catastrophe in which the Seine River, carrying winter rains from its tributaries, flooded the conurbation of Paris, France. The Seine water level rose eight meters (more than 26 feet) above the ordinary level. [1]
In the winter of 1909–1910, Paris and the surrounding area experienced higher than normal rainfall which saturated the ground and filled rivers to overflowing. In January 1910, Parisians were preoccupied with daily life and lulled into a false sense of security because the Seine's waters level had risen and fallen again in December. Consequently, they largely ignored reports of mudslides and flooding occurring upriver. They were also slow to notice warnings signs within the city as the Seine's water level rose eight meters (26.2467) higher than normal; [2] its water began to flow much faster than normal, and large amounts of debris appeared. [3]
By late January, the Seine River flooded Paris when water pushed upwards from overflowing sewers and subway tunnels, then seeped into basements through fully saturated soil and from the sewer system that got backed up, which led to the basements of several buildings sustaining damage. [4] The waters did not overflow the river's banks within the city, but flooded Paris through tunnels, sewers, and drains. These larger sewer tunnels were engineered by Baron Haussmann and Eugene Belgrand in 1878 which magnified the destruction caused by the floods in 1910. [5] In neighboring towns both east and west of the capital, the river rose above its banks and flooded the surrounding terrain directly.
Winter floods were a normal occurrence in Paris but, on 21 January, the river began to rise more rapidly than normal. This was seen as a sort of spectacle where people were actually standing in the streets watching the water rise in the Seine. [5] Over the course of the following week, thousands of Parisians evacuated their homes as water infiltrated buildings and streets throughout the city, shutting down much basic infrastructure. The infrastructure was more vulnerable to flooding because most of it was built within the sewage system in order to avoid cluttering the streets. [4]
Police, firemen, and soldiers moved through waterlogged streets in boats to rescue stranded residents from second-story windows and to distribute aid. Refugees gathered in makeshift shelters in churches, schools, and government buildings. Although the water threatened to overflow the tops of the quay walls lining the river, workmen were able to keep the Seine back with hastily built levees.
Once water invaded the Gare d'Orsay rail terminal, its tracks soon sat under more than a meter (1.09361 yards) of water. To continue moving throughout the city, residents traveled by boat or across a series of wooden walkways built by government engineers and civilians.
On 28 January the water reached its maximum height at 8.62 meters (28.28 feet) above its normal level. [4] In March, the Seine finally returned to normal levels.
Estimates of the flood damage reached some four hundred million francs, or $1.5 billion in today's money. The flooding lasted nearly a week, according to one report. [6] Remarkably, despite the damage and duration of the flood, no deaths were reported.
There were fears that an outbreak of disease would occur after debris from flooded homes piled into the streets, but no significant outbreak occurred. [3]
The Seine is a 777-kilometre-long (483 mi) river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, 30 kilometres (19 mi) northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre. It is navigable by ocean-going vessels as far as Rouen, 120 kilometres (75 mi) from the sea. Over 60 percent of its length, as far as Burgundy, is negotiable by large barges and most tour boats, and nearly its whole length is available for recreational boating; excursion boats offer sightseeing tours of the river banks in the capital city, Paris.
Wallace fountains are public drinking fountains named after, financed by and roughly designed by Sir Richard Wallace. The final design and sculpture is by Wallace's friend Charles-Auguste Lebourg. They are large cast-iron sculptures scattered throughout the city of Paris, France, mainly along the most-frequented sidewalks. A great aesthetic success, they are recognized worldwide as one of the symbols of Paris. A Wallace fountain can be seen outside the Wallace Collection in London, the gallery that houses the works of art collected by Sir Richard Wallace and the first four Marquesses of Hertford.
The sewers of the French capital Paris date back to the year 1370 when the first underground system was constructed under Rue Montmartre. Consecutive French governments enlarged the system to cover the city's population, including expansions under Louis XIV and Napoleon III, and modernisation programs in the 1990s under Mayor Jacques Chirac. The system has featured in popular culture through its existence, including Victor Hugo's 1862 novel, Les Misérables, and H. L. Humes' 1958 novel The Underground City.
Haussmann's renovation of Paris was a vast public works programme commissioned by French Emperor Napoleon III and directed by his prefect of the Seine, Georges-Eugène Haussmann, between 1853 and 1870. It included the demolition of medieval neighbourhoods that were deemed overcrowded and unhealthy by officials at the time; the building of wide avenues; new parks and squares; the annexation of the suburbs surrounding Paris; and the construction of new sewers, fountains and aqueducts. Haussmann's work was met with fierce opposition, and he was finally dismissed by Napoleon III in 1870; but work on his projects continued until 1927. The street plan and distinctive appearance of the centre of Paris today are largely the result of Haussmann's renovation.
Alma–Marceau is a station on Line 9 of the Paris Métro, named after the Pont de l'Alma and the Avenue Marceau. The station opened on 27 May 1923 with the extension of the line from Trocadéro to Saint-Augustin.
The Pont de l'Alma is a road bridge in Paris, France, across the Seine. It was named to commemorate the Battle of Alma during the Crimean War, in which the Ottoman-Franco-British alliance achieved victory over the Russian army in 1854. The bridge is also known for being the site of the car crash that caused the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997.
Eugène Belgrand was a French engineer who made significant contributions to the modernization of the Parisian sewer system during the 19th century rebuilding of Paris. Much of Belgrand's work remains in use today.
The Bassin de la Villette is the largest artificial lake in Paris. It was filled with water on 2 December 1808. Located in the 19th arrondissement of the capital, it links the Canal de l'Ourcq to the Canal Saint-Martin, and it represents one of the elements of the Réseau des Canaux Parisiens, a public-works authority operated by the city. The other components of the network are the Canal de l'Ourcq, the Canal Saint-Denis, the Canal Saint-Martin, and the Bassin de l'Arsenal. Together, these canals and basins extend roughly 130 kilometres (81 mi).
The Wall of Philip Augustus is the oldest city wall of Paris (France) whose plan is accurately known. Partially integrated into buildings, more traces of it remain than of the later fortifications.
Louis Jean-Baptiste Lépine was a French lawyer, politician and administrator who was Governor General of Algeria and twice Préfet de Police with the Paris Police Prefecture from 1893 to 1897 and again from 1899 to 1913. On each occasion he assumed office during a period of instability in the governance of the French state seen by his supporters as a man who could bring order. He earned the nickname of "The Little Man with the Big Stick" for his methodology in handling large Parisian crowds. During his periods as Préfet de police he instigated a series of reforms that modernised the French Police Force. An efficient and clear-sighted administrator he introduced scientific analysis into policing with reforms in forensic science and the training of detectives.Lépine was also responsible for convening and re-invigorating the Exposition Universelle whereby an annual competition known as the Concours Lépine was introduced for inventors and innovators to have their work presented and acclaimed. An annual competition that has now had 120-plus editions.
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First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte moved into the Tuileries Palace on 19 February 1800 and immediately began to re-establish calm and order after the years of uncertainty and terror of the Revolution. He made peace with the Catholic Church; masses were held again in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, priests were allowed to wear ecclesiastical clothing again, and churches to ring their bells. To re-establish order in the unruly city, he abolished the elected position of the Mayor of Paris, and replaced it with a Prefect of the Seine and a Prefect of Police, both appointed by him. Each of the twelve arrondissements had its own mayor, but their power was limited to enforcing the decrees of Napoleon's ministers.
During the Restoration of the Bourbon monarchy (1815–1830) that followed the downfall of Napoleon, Paris was ruled by a royal government which tried to reverse many of the changes made to the city during the French Revolution. The city grew in population from 713,966 in 1817 to 785,866 in 1831. During the period Parisians saw the first public transport system, the first gas street lights, and the first uniformed Paris policemen. In July 1830, a popular uprising in the streets of Paris brought down the Bourbon monarchy and began reign of a constitutional monarch, Louis-Philippe.
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Jeffrey H. Jackson, Paris Under Water: How the City of Light Survived the Great Flood of 1910 (NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010)
Media related to Great flood of Paris in 1910 at Wikimedia Commons