River flooding forced the temporary closure of the famous grotto at the shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in southern France. Source: NCR Online.
The shrine complex remained open to visitors. A morning Mass, however, was cancelled on Saturday at the major Catholic pilgrimage site, which has experienced several major floods in recent years.
“Sudden rise in the waters of the Gave de Pau flooded the Grotto and the Sanctuary,” the sanctuary stated on Saturday on X, formerly known as Twitter.
A notice on its website similarly read, “Flooding. Sanctuary doors remain open. Information on site,” with a photo showing the grotto partially submerged in water.
Livestreamed video from the grotto on Saturday afternoon indicated that the flood waters had receded, as it showed water from the adjacent Gave de Pau river rushing along, but contained by, a berm in front of the grotto’s plaza as workers used machinery to clean the area.
Later that day, the shrine released a statement saying that the grotto had been cleaned and was reopened, adding that no pilgrimages had been cancelled.
“The emergency flood protection plan has proved its effectiveness,” the statement read. “Celebrations will resume at the usual times, in all the Shrine’s basilicas and places of worship.”
After Mass in Papua New Guinea on Sunday, Pope Francis said: “Our thoughts are with the shrine of Lourdes, which has unfortunately been hit by a flood.”
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes is a 53 hectare shrine complex that includes 22 places of worship, including three basilicas. The Gave de Pau bends sharply around the shrine, skirting the grotto on the sanctuary’s north side.
According to La Croix, a French Catholic media outlet, hundreds of pilgrims were evacuated from their hotels.
“The city is frequently subject to flooding and has adopted procedures related to this risk,” La Croix reported.
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Flash flooding temporarily closes Lourdes’ grotto (By Maria Wiering, OSV News via NCR Online)
