A French city ​​​​has been left underwater after heavy downpours, with cars swept away in floods.

Horrifying videos on X, formerly Twitter, show the streets of Cannes completely flooded this morning.

Bystanders were also left clinging to lampposts and fighting strong currents as they attempted to cross roads in the seaside city in southern France.

Meteo France, the country’s forecaster, has issued an urgent flood alertwhich remains in place.

They said: “Moderate damages may occur, especially in vulnerable or in exposed areas and to people who carry out weather-related activities.

“Be careful, keep informed of the latest weather forecast.”

Another video on X shows rubbish bins floating down the streets and submerged cars, with the caption: “Cannes this morning under torrents of rain”.

Others show underground car parks and tunnels completely flooded. Torrents of mud in the streets and flooding with the saturation of car traffic were on the A8 motorway in particular.

According to La Chaîne Météo, 26millimetersfell in one hour, including 18millimetersin 12 minutes, resulting in significant urban runoff and flooding. The storm if believed to have now passed and is being evacuated by sea. 

The République district is believed to be particularly affected, with notable damage to cars and streets. According to the official city X page , the passages leading to Boulevard du Midi, under the railway line, are closed to traffic over safety reasons.

Starting at 7am, the storm surprised the inhabitants of Cannes, with the city telling them in a text that “the intensity of the storms had not been predicted” and urging them to remain cautious, according to francebleu.fr .