7 die as floods hit southern France - a foot of rain in 48 hours (UPDATE)

India Blooms
Mon, 11 Mar 2024 14:46 UTC

Three people have died and four others are missing as a result of flooding in the southern French department of Gard, French media reported.

Two children are among the missing, Franceinfo radio reported on Sunday.

On Saturday night, heavy rainfall hit the region, prompting police to begin active search and rescue operations. By Sunday evening, the bodies of two dead people were found in the car.

In addition, a 62-year-old Belgian man died after his car was washed away by the course when he tried to cross a bridge, traffic on which was blocked due to rising water levels.

Comment: Floodlist reports:

Storm Monica swept across the country from 08 March 2024 bringing extremely heavy rain. Some areas in the south recorded more than 300 mm of rain in 48 hours. Since 09 March, the rain has triggered severe flooding in the departments of Gard, Ardèche and Var.

Update March 13

The Connexion reports:

The body of a man was found yesterday evening (March 12) in the Ardèche department, three days after a hydroelectric plant worker went missing in the area.

It was discovered by hunters and relatives of the 73-year old who disappeared on Saturday evening during flash flooding.

The body was found close to a micropower station along the Eyrieux river, where the man was working during Saturday evening's storms.

Authorities believe it is most probably the body of the missing man, however rescue workers and police forces were unable to reach the location of the body last night but planned to make a fresh attempt this morning.

It now brings the death toll from the weekend's storms and high waves to seven - six in the south of France and one in the west.