FLOODS in northern France have caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes as waters envelope streets and river banks, French media reported.
Some 3 thousand people were evacuated from the town of Nemours, in the Seine-et-Marne region east of Paris, and nearly 5 000 from the department of Essone, south of Paris, including 2 000 from the suburban centre of Longjumeau, French media said.
Television images showed highways underwater, and the Paris police department Twitter account published photographs of firefighters rescuing a homeless man from the street beneath a bridge that was being submerged.
Historic villages centres, including main promenades lined with shops and bakeries, had more than a metre of water covering the streets.
In central Paris, the Seine rose and covered the river banks’ broad walkways. A dpa reporter saw a family evacuating a houseboat on the Seine using a small dinghy. – dpa
