Two killed, 24 missing in severe floods in Italy and France

Flooding in France and Italy at levels not seen for 20 years has killed at least two people and left 24 others missing, prompting hundreds of rescue operations.

Among the missing are two children, aged six and 11, and a shepherd who was washed away by a current alongside his brother who was rescued after managing to grab hold of a branch.

Nearly a year’s worth of rain fell in just 12 hours in parts of the Alps spanning the two countries as a storm moved in overnight.

The resulting floodwater has torn through the region, devastating families and destroying hundreds of homes, bridges and other key infrastructure, leaving communities trapped and isolated.

In Italy, a firefighter was killed during a rescue operation in the mountainous northern region of Val d'Aosta, while another body was found near where a man had been swept away by floodwaters on Friday night.

Authorities were searching for 17 missing people in neighbouring Piedmont, where unrelenting overnight rainfall hit levels not seen since 1958, with as much as 63cm falling in just one day, according to the Italian civil protection agency.

Those missing are mostly people who had been driving in the Col de Tende high mountain pass between France and Italy.

Among them are two Germans travelling with their 11 and 6-year-old grandchildren, a pair of brothers returning from France, and a man who was swept away upon stepping out of his car in the region’s Vercelli province, where floodwaters hit 20-year highs.

Firefighter spokesperson Luca Cari said he suspects most of those reported missing in Italy have lost phone contact, but at the moment they are not thought to be in imminent danger.

The situation at the tunnel on the high mountain pass is complicated by the fact that French emergency responders cannot access their side due to flood damage, Mr Cari said.

Eleven campers were saved in Vercelli, while Alpine rescue squads evacuated seven people stuck in houses cut off by floods at Terme di Valdieri, some of whom had to be carried on stretchers due to the muddy conditions and accumulation of detritus.

Nearer the French border, two brothers tending animals were swept away in flood waters. One managed to grab hold of a tree, and was rescued. Authorities are still searching on the French side for his sibling.

In France, schools were shut and people told to remain in their homes in the mountainous region surrounding Nice on Friday as nearly a year’s worth of rain fell in less than 12 hours and the national weather agency issued a danger alert.

As prime minister Jean Castex and interior minister Gerald Darmanin arrived in the region on Saturday, president Emmanuel Macron expressed gratitude toward rescuers, tweeting: “Together we will get through this.”

Local firefighters said several dozen people were evacuated from their homes overnight, but that at least eight people were missing, including two firefighters whose vehicle was carried away by water when the road collapsed during a rescue operation.

Nice mayor Christian Estrosi expressed his “emotion and sympathy” for the families. He said over 100 homes had been destroyed or severely damaged.

Confirming that at least eight people are missing in France, Mr Castex said: “I cannot hide our grave concern on the definitive toll.”

“As I speak, priority goes to searching for victims, providing supplies and accommodation for the people affected, and restoring communications,” the prime minister added.

Rescue efforts included 871 personnel working on the ground, in addition to military helicopters and troops helping with emergency assistance, Mr Castex said.

Additional reporting by AP