France rescues 1600 campers from floods

Heavy floods have forced the evacuation of 1,600 people – most of them campers – in southern France, officials say.
They say a 70-year-old German man who was helping to supervise children at one of the summer camps is missing.
The worst-hit areas are Gard, Ardeche and Drome. More than 400 firefighters and police – as well as four helicopters – have been deployed.
The storms which caused the floods come after a period of unusually hot weather in southern France and much of Europe.
According to UK Met Office meteorologist Marco Petagna , almost 3in (8cm) of rain fell in a 24-hour period.
In a statement (in French), the French interior ministry said six departments had been placed on a flood alert, while about 17,000 homes were without power in the south-west and north-east.