French Flood Toll Now 34; 50 Still Missing
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VAISON-LA-ROMAINE, France — Families claimed bodies that were laid out in rows of white coffins Thursday as firemen dug through the mud looking for more victims of flash floods. Officials said the number killed had increased to at least 34.
About 50 people were still missing, and officials said there was little hope any of them survived the storm, which may turn out to be France’s deadliest. An October, 1958, storm in the neighboring Gard region killed 36.
At least 23 people died in this ancient Roman town when the rain-swollen Ouveze River rose 50 feet Tuesday. The other deaths were elsewhere in the Vaucluse region of southeast France, a popular vacation area, and in the neighboring regions of Ardeche and Drome.
In parts of Vaison-la-Romaine, about 25 miles north of Avignon, stores reopened, cafes were crowded and children were once again in school.
But elsewhere, people picked through foundations of houses swept away by the surging river, helicopters circled overhead looking for the missing and workers dug cars out of the mud.
As the toll mounted, ecologists and others threatened officials with lawsuits for allowing rapid construction of homes and camping sites in flood zones. Others said deforestation contributed to the flooding.
A videotape taken by a resident of Vaison-la-Romaine showed torrents of muddy water coursing through the town.
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