Marseilles (France) Dec 03: At least five people were reported dead in France today as a result of torrential rains and floods which triggered a high-level weather alert and a government crisis meeting. Two nuclear power plants had to be closed yesterday and over 5,000 people were evacuated from their homes in the southeast and east of the country. Schools were closed, roads and 15,000 telephone lines were cut and around a dozen night trains were cancelled.

The national weather service, Meteo France, issued a high-level warning for the two regions, saying incessant rains and high winds were expected to continue until Thursday. Since Monday up to 200 millimetres of rain have fallen in the Rhone Valley and along the coast near Marseilles, France' second biggest city. The eastern city of Lyon saw 100 millimetres fall in just 24 hours, the most intense rains in half a century.

Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin called a government crisis meeting last evening and environment Minister Roselyne Bachelot announced she would visit Marseilles, where the regional governor said his emergency services were on a "war footing". Bureau Report