Watch: Flash floods create river of wine in France

Devastating flash floods in southern France, which have so far claimed the lives of at least 11 people, also caused a river of wine to flow through the streets of the French commune of Trèbes as a local storage warehouse was overwhelmed by flood waters.

Red wine is seen flowing from a warehouse in Trèbes in a video published on social media by Global News, turning the murky brown flood water purple. The media have widely reported that the building from which it was pouring was a local storage warehouse, but it remains unclear which company, winery or wineries it belongs to.

A red alert was issued after flash floods hit the Aude region of southern France overnight on 14-15 October, with several months’ worth of rain falling in just a few hours.

It has been reported that French President Emmanuel Macron will be visiting the affected areas today (16 October).

It is believed the floods have claimed the lives of at least 11 people, with the death toll having been moved down from 13 after an error led to some of the dead being counted twice, France’s interior ministry has stated.

Among them was nun who was swept to her death in the village of Villardonnel, while a policewoman attending a weather-related traffic incident was killed by a motorist in the town of Albi, according to the BBC.

The river at Trèbes, where the above footage is filmed, reached seven metres (23ft) – its highest level in 127 years.

French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe stated that seven helicopters and 700 members of the emergency services were deployed to deal with the freak weather.