13 dead as flooding hits southwestern France

At least 13 people died when violent rainstorms turned rivers into raging torrents in southwest France yesterday, prompting some of the deadliest flooding in years, officials said. The equivalent of three months of rainfall was dumped overnight in the Aude region in just a few hours, swelling rivers and flooding fields and towns, officials added.

One of the overnight victims was an 88-year-old nun who was swept from her room by floodwaters at the Burning Bush priory in the village of Villardonnel, north of the fortress city of Carcassonne. Elsewhere, flash floods overturned cars, ripped up streets and battered buildings and bridges, especially to the north of Carcassonne.