Britons stranded as f lash f looding kills 19 in French Riviera
BRITISH holidaymakers were caught up yesterday in ‘apocalyptic’ rain and flash floods in the south of France that left at least 19 people dead and many more missing.
Up to seven inches (180mm) of rain fell in just three hours overnight, inundating towns and villages across the Riviera.
Three people drowned in a retirement home in Biot, overlooking the coast near Antibes, after the River Brague burst its banks.
Five more died in an underground car park in Mandelieu-La Napoule and three others were killed when their car became stuck in a tunnel in Vallauris-Golfe- Juan. A woman in her 60s drowned trying to walk through a flooded street in Cannes.
Eric Ciotti, the president of the Alpes-Maritime department, said: ‘We lived through an apocalyptic situation that we’ve never experienced before.’
The A8 motorway, which runs through the region, was closed, along with flooded rail stations. Hundreds of holidaymakers, including many Britons, were forced to seek shelter at Nice airport overnight on Saturday.
A local ambulance service source said the ‘devastating’ weather had put many people at risk, particularly in camp sites in the region. Some climbed on to the roofs of caravans and outbuildings to escape the floods. They were res- cued by helicopters, although one body was found at a camp site near Antibes.
Some of the affected areas last night remained inaccessible, raising concerns that there may be many more casualties and further damage. About 27,000 homes were left without power. Cars were over- turned and roads were thick with mud. Hundreds of people were stranded overnight at a concert venue in Nice after attending a show by the rock star Johnny Hallyday.
Sarah Kovandzich, a British visitor to Cannes, said: ‘I’ve never seen anything like it. The water started to seep into the bar, then we were up to our ankles.
‘People were putting their feet up on the chairs. Outside, you could s ee plant pots and f l owers just being carried along the road by the water.’
There were reports of looting in the region. Bernard Cazeneuve, the French interior minister, said scores of extra police and emergency services workers were involved in rescuing people and defending property.
President François Hollande, who visited the scene yesterday, said: ‘It’s not over – the toll is not yet finalised. In times like this, we must be fast, efficient and coordinated.’
France Météo yesterday reported improving weather in the South of France, saying the storms had moved across to Italy.