At least three people have died after rainstorms and floods ravaged the French Riviera in what has been labelled a ‘natural disaster’.

The floods reportedly caused cars to be swept away by waters, with roads and bridges destroyed on Tuesday. 

The horrors in southern France have been described as ‘scenes of war’. 

An elderly couple died in the seaside town of Le Lavandou and one other person in the town of Vidauban, local authorities have confirmed.

The OAPs’ vehicle was caught in raging floodwaters and the woman’s body remained trapped inside the wreckage.

Authorities have launched an investigation to establish the cause of death, and situation on the ground has been described as ‘quite difficult’.

Gil Bernardi, mayor of Le Lavandou, described ‘scenes of war’, ‘roads torn up’ and ‘bridges torn down.’

‘It was a really violent, vicious, incomprehensible phenomenon,’ Bernardi told BFM television.

Storms in the south of France have caused cars to be swept up in the flooding

A video shared on social media appearing to show La Môle–Saint-Tropez Airport in southeast France flooded

Gil Bernardi, mayor of Le Lavandou, described ‘scenes of war’, ‘roads torn up’ and ‘bridges torn down.’

‘There is nothing left, no electricity, no drinking water, no sewage treatment plant,’ he added. 

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Villages are submerged and roads become rivers as France is hit by devastating floods

In Vidauban, a local official pulled a driver from her vehicle but the passenger could not be saved.

‘A driver and her passenger drove onto a country road that was completely submerged’ and the car fell into a ditch, the mayor, Claude Pianetti, said on Facebook.

The bad weather has caused homes to be flooded, damage to railways tracks and the evacuation of hundreds of passengers aboard a high-speed TGV train in the middle of the night.

The TGV, on its way from Toulouse to Paris late Monday, was on a track that became dislodged when the ground subsided because of the torrential rains.

The train had to stop on the tracks overnight near the town of Tonneins, and the more than 500 passengers had to be evacuated and transported by bus.

According to the prefecture, the rescue operation involved dozens including firefighters, police and volunteers.

‘It was a really violent, vicious, incomprehensible phenomenon,’ Bernardi told BFM television

The floods reportedly caused cars to be swept away by waters, roads and bridged destroyed which one official described as ‘scenes of war’ in southern France

The flooding in the south of France has also affected beaches such as this near Lavandou

The bad weather has caused homes to be flooded, damage to railways tracks and evacuation of hundreds of passengers aboard a high-speed TGV train in the middle of the night

Damaged car on a mud-covered street following a flood caused by heavy rain in Cavaliere village of Le Lavandou commune in the Var department, southeastern France

the mayor of Tonneins, Dante Rinaudo described ‘avalanches of water’ in the town that flooded cellars and houses, he said the storms should be recognised by the government as a natural disaster

Workers clear debris from a bridge following heavy rain in Le Lavandou, southeastern France

‘We narrowly avoided a disaster, the tracks were exposed and the TGV was suspended,’ the mayor of Tonneins, Dante Rinaudo, told AFP.

Describing ‘avalanches of water’ in the town that flooded cellars and houses, he said the storms should be recognised by the government as a natural disaster.

Another train travelling between Toulouse and Paris was also stranded overnight in Agen, and passengers were taken to Toulouse by bus on Tuesday morning.

A spokesperson for the state rail operator SNCF said traffic would be suspended for ‘at least several days’ between Agen and Marmande in southwestern France, affecting TGV services between Bordeaux and Toulouse.