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France's national weather agency says 15 departments remain on orange alert for floods, the second-highest level of vigilance, as rivers across France keep swelling, with more rain expected on Thursday.

In addition to Paris, where the Seine river is expected to keep rising until Saturday, the other regions threatened are in the north and east of the country. Four other departments in central France have been placed on alert for snow and ice.

Meteo France said exceptionally high levels of rain this winter are to blame for the floods, with rainfall in Paris twice as high as normal.

The Seine reached 5.44 meters (nearly 18 feet) by Thursday morning at the Austerlitz bridge in the east of the city. It was expected to keep rising, reaching 6.1 meters (20 feet) by Saturday.