Holidaymakers among victims caught up in torrential storms in south of France
BRITISH holidaymakers are caught up in “apocalyptic” rain and flash floods that have killed at least 16 people in France.
Three more are reported missing after violent floods swept the South of France last night, a popular tourist destination for Brits.
People were found dead in Cannes, Golfe-Juan, Mendelieu-la-Napoule and Biot, where three drowned in a retirement home after the nearby River Brague broke its banks.
Five died in an underground car park and a woman in her 60s was killed trying to walk through a flooded street, while others drowned in cars.
Hundreds of holidaymakers, including many from Britain, were forced to take shelter at Nice airport overnight, as 27,000 homes were left without power.
Eric Ciotti, president of the Alpes-Maritime department, tweeted: “We lived through an apocalyptic situation that we’ve never experienced before.”
A French league football match between Nice and Nantes was abandoned at half time due to the torrential rain which overturned cars and left roads thick with mud.
Helicopters rescued those caught at campsites as they climbed roofs of caravans and outbuildings in desperate attempts to get out of the water.
President Francois Hollande called for “national solidarity” in the face of the crisis, as he visited the devastated area with Prime Minister Manuel Valls.
Some affected areas remain inaccessible, raising concerns there may be more casualties and further damage.
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