Man swept away by river Loire as floods hit France

Severe Flooding in Western France

PARIS, Feb 18 (Reuters) - A man trying to navigate the swollen river Loire has been swept away, officials said on Wednesday, as much of western France was placed under high alert for floods, with yet more heavy rain expected.

Current Flood Alerts

Four départements are under red alert - the highest level - with nine more under orange alert, meaning major to significant flooding is occurring or expected within the next 24 hours.

Search and Rescue Operations

The 53-year-old man fell off a small boat or a kayak south of the city of Angers, BFM TV reported.

Impact on Local Communities

Search operations were underway but considering the flow and speed of the Loire after such heavy rains "there is objectively little chance of finding that person," senior official Francois Pesneau told BFM TV and other local media.

In the nearby town of Denee, residents are moving around by boat as the river submerged streets and flooded houses.

"There's no access anymore (to Denee), the roads are not functional due to the floods. And so the only way to come to the village is by boat," municipal worker Jason Garnier said on Tuesday. "People who want to go to work, well, they leave by boat in the morning, and they go home in the evening by boat."

French Environment Minister Monique Barbut said the level of humidity in soils in France was unseen since 1959, after more than 30 days of bad weather.

Spain, Portugal and Britain are among other European countries badly hit by flooding this year due to unusually heavy rain.

(Reporting by Stephane Mahé and Ingrid Melander; editing by Philippa Fletcher)