Vineyards in parts of Languedoc were damaged and vast swathes of land left underwater after six months' worth of rain fell in a day in the Hérault department on Monday.
The affected area has been declared a disaster zone by the Government after rail and road routes were destroyed and 1500 emergency workers were deployed after many areas had more than 100 millimeters (four inches) of rain in the space of an afternoon. Some areas received three times that amount.
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The city of Montpellier and the surrounding area sustained "huge damage", according to Jérôme Despuy, president of the chamber of agriculture for the Hérault department.
French agriculture minister Stéphane Le Foll announced that his ministry was proceeding with an evaluation of the situation. He has promised that "losses will be covered if the damage impacts on the 2015 harvest or following ones."
The grape harvest began in August and Despey estimated that only around 15 percent remained to be picked, but the damage in the vineyards was severe. Speaking on Tuesday afternoon, he said: "To the east of Montpellier, the waters have invaded entire vineyard sections and it remains difficult to access the flooded parcels."
Despey also said that the harvest had been interrupted to the west of the department when floods had hit the area around Lamalou-les-Bains and Aveyron on September 19. Five people died in the flooding there and "several thousand hectares were flooded and hundreds of hectares of vineyards, orchards and crops were impacted, giving important losses", he said.
This is the last week of harvest and it was the upper areas of the Hérault, northwest of Montpellier, and areas to the south between Lunel and Lattes that suffered most.
In recognizing the seriousness of the situation regarding the flooding "adding to the numerous severe climatic incidents" that Languedoc-Roussillon had suffered, Le Foll issued a statement saying that he hoped farmers would be able to obtain tax relief in compensation. He also called on the banks to "take into account the unusual situation and to help those vignerons affected get through this difficult period."
The Languedoc region has been hit repeatedly with rain and hailstorms this year, causing chaos in the agricultural sector.
Despey has asked for these reliefs to be granted before, but said the commission for agricultural disasters – who need to give their expert assessment – will not meet until December 17, which was "much too late to provide compensation for the damage incurred."
The Hérault department is an important agricultural area, with a large vineyard area, as well as fruits, vegetables, livestock and crops.
The storm was last reported to be heading east towards Provence.
