Flash Floods Kill 11 in Mauritius

Flash floods killed at least 11 people in the capital of the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius this weekend, leaving the prime minister pointing a finger at climate change as the culprit. Officials today said that most of the dead drowned in rivers of water that rose swiftly Saturday in a pedestrian underpass and an underground car park. Torrential downpours slammed the capital of Port Louis; the meteorological office reported six inches of rain fell in less than an hour.

National TV showed people clinging to each other as they waded through hip-high water in a central street, and L'Express newspaper showed cars floating away. Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam declared today a day of mourning. On national radio yesterday he blamed climate change for the floods. The BBC has photos. (More Mauritius stories.)