Two French rivers disappear underground in large cracks and sinkholes: The Doubs River (Franche-Comté) and the Risle (Normandy)

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The Doubs river flows normally in Franche-Comté, France. But since about a week or so, the river has totally dried up over a length of more than 1 km, between Pontarlier and Morteau, although precipitation has been abundant this winter and spring. The river has disappeared, and with it, the fauna and flora. Everything is dead. Two weeks ago, 13km of the Risle River in Normandy also disappeared underground in a large crater. According to geologists, this unprecedented event is due to large cracks and craters in the riverbed.

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The Doubs River has disappeared underground in August 2018. PhotoPQR/L’Est Républicain/MaxPP via Le Parisien

The cave of Remonot is located near the village of Morteau along the Doubs. Dedicated to the Virgin Mary, this Chapel-Cave contains miraculous water and is visited each year on August 15, 2018, day of the Assumption. But during this year’s annual pilgrimage, the cave was dry! The first time ever!

Nearby, the Doubs river is also dry. No water, just pebbles and dead fish.

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This situation is anomalous as it has abundantly rained this spring and winter. via Facebook

Residents explain they have never seen this before. The river has disappeared over more than 1 kilometer, and with it, the fauna and flora. Everything is dead. The president of a local fishing association reports having experienced such a situation during the severe drought of 1976. But now, it’s different… there was a lot of snow and water this winter. This situation is totally insane and ANOMALOUS!

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Instead of a large flowing river, the Doubs is dry, with just pebbles and dead fish visible. By Fabrice Coffrini

Now, geologists say the river disappearance is due to large cracks in the karstic riverbed, which empty the river underground like a siphon. It is perhaps the important spring floods that washed away the sediment patches that blocked the holes and fissures.

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The most logical explanations are cracks or craters in the riverbed. By Fabrice Coffrini

After disappearing, the Doubs than re-enters the Loue, the other large river in the region. So the cracks kind of link the two rivers?!?

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No swimming, just walking on the riverbed! By Fabrice Coffrini

Two weeks ago, 13km of the Risle River also disappeared suddenly in Normandy, after a big sinkhole openened up in the riverbed:

But now, everybody is just wondering when will the rivers reappear again! Well, it may take longer than you think guys!

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Le Pariesien – Environnement : la rivière du Doubs a disparu
LCI – Le Doubs complètement asséché, du jamais vu!

25 Comments

  1. One see this on the west side of Vancouver Island.
    The limestone layers erode by various means that can interact
    and new underground channels are carved.
    Acid rain is one- The visible mechanism is a boulder of
    Harder mineral ending up in a shallow depression and being spun
    about in it by floods.
    Overtime you can see-“sinkholes”10 meters deep with a very
    round medicine ball sized rock in the bottom. These drain in the
    dry seasons by seeping until they breakthrough into underling
    porous strata .
    So what happens to EDF’s reactors and cooling ponds when the
    rivers cooling then-disappear?

    • Well EDF’s reactors are cooled with mostly only Rhone’s water. And curiously, the water has disppeared only over a 1km length. It may be possible that the water has reached another large river in the area through underground fissures. It must look like an amazing labirynth down there.

  2. Every time something like this happens, imo, there are signs of ancient, mud volcanism, in situ, and a warm spot of water, off the coast. Maps which show things like that, are in the public domain, but noone is supposedly entitled to an opinion.

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