Four people have died in heavy rains and floods in southeastern France, the Bouches-du-Rhône department prefecture reported in an updated balance. Three of the deaths were registered there, and the fourth was in Haute-Corse. One person remains missing in the Var.
The two victims in Bouches-du-Rhône were women aged 86 and 26. Firefighters found them drowned in a basement in Lanson-Provence. A day earlier, a 75-year-old man was swept away by rising waters near Saint-Mitre-les-Remparts. His body was found in the neighboring town of Istres. Another person was injured in the floods, the prefecture said.
„The number of victims has unfortunately increased to three dead and one injured“, local authorities announced in their updated balance.Victim also in Corsica
In Upper Corsica, rescuers found the body of a driver after the rising waters of the Fium’Orbu river swept away a 4x4 vehicle near Ghisonaccia. The other person in the car managed to escape through a window.
Extremely heavy rain fell in the Corsica region. 538.5 millimeters of precipitation were measured in Solenzara, and around 150 people were evacuated to safety near Ghisonaccia. The floods also forced the evacuation of 21 residents of a nursing home in Prunelles-di-Fiumorbo.
At the height of the disaster, about 8,500 households on the island were left without electricity. Hundreds of firefighters and dozens of specialized vehicles were mobilized to restore networks and drainage. Local authorities warned that strong winds could complicate cleanup and cause trees to fall.
Searching for a man in Var
Rescue teams are continuing to search for a man who is missing near Roquebrune-sur-Argens in Var. His car was found damaged and empty near a pond, French media reported.
The heavy rains, which began on Monday, affected areas from Hérault to Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Streets, homes and roads were flooded, and traffic on highways, railways and air routes was disrupted. In Bouches-du-Rhône, firefighters carried out more than 900 operations, and dozens of residents were evacuated or rescued.
According to “Le Monde“ the weather episode led to the highest rainfall recorded in a short period in some parts of Corsica. The situation is gradually returning to normal, but authorities continue to monitor for new floods, power outages and dangerous sections of the roads.
Sources: abc.com.py, lemonde.fr, euronews.com