AND HERE IS THE NEWS…

….a quick glance at the latest local news with Caroline Manson

Busy start to July for firefighters

After the incredibly hot weather in June it is sadly no surprise that firefighters have been called out to several fires throughout the department. On Tuesday 8th flames devastated 3 hectares in Estagel and also Brouilla. On Wednesday 9th sixty firefighters and a water bomber helicopter were sent up to a fire between Cérét and Reynès, caused by the fall of a high-voltage line – which also caused a major power outage leaving over 200 households without electricity. On Thursday 10th a loud explosion was heard in the vicinity of Argeles-sur-Mer when a car caught fire, leading to a scrub fire near the D2E. A few minutes later another fire broke out in vegetation near the RN116 near Eus – firefighters were able to protect two properties and several greenhouses but 2 hectares of land were destroyed. The last (we hope) incident being on Friday when a fire broke out on the main RN116 (now called the RD66) between Ille-sur-Tet and Millas. Traffic was blocked in both directions as around 90 firefighters, supported by a water helicopter bomber, battled with the flames. In total two hectares of vegetation were destroyed and the road was reopened after 2 hours.

Police test new way to punish motorists

Police regularly carry out random controls of traffic circulating on the busy A9 motorway, and on Saturday 5th July one was carried out on the Catalan Village service area (near Banyuls-dels-Aspres). The difference this time was that it was described as a “Pedagogical Control” – motorists who were found guilty of ‘minor’ offences were given the opportunity to be educated on the error of their ways instead of receiving a fine. Minor offences included slightly exceeding the speed limit, licence plates covered by bicycle racks, not wearing seat-belts and failure to use indicators. The offenders had the opportunity to follow 4 awareness workshops and then fill out a road safety questionnaire. 142 vehicles were controlled during the operation and 23 people accepted the lecture to avoid receiving a ticket and/or fine.

Patrouille de France are coming to the P-O

On Tuesday 15th July the Patrouille de France (French version of the Red Arrows) will be giving an aerobatic display over Le Barcares. The squad is due to fly overhead at 5pm and the display will be best viewed from the beaches, but aficionados will also have the chance for a preview as they are due to fly over the seaside resort when the arrive on Monday July 14th. This will be their only visit to the department this year.

Head on collision at Mas Sabole

Several firefighters had to be diverted from fighting the various fires in the region on Friday when a two vehicles collided head on at Mas Sabole on the D900. Three people were injured, one in a serious condition and needing to be helicoptered to Perpignan Hospital. Traffic on this major axis was severely disrupted and the road was finally cleared by late afternoon.

Violent storms hit the P-O this weekend

While we have all been praying for cooler weather and rain, Saturday’s violent storms were perhaps more than we had been hoping for. In Estagel over 150mm of rain fell in just 2 hours and firefighters were kept very busy dealing with flooded roads, overflowing streams and flooding in houses. Nearly 100 interventions took place and included saving 2 people who were blocked in their vehicle after water rose suddenly in Ille-Sur-Tet, the evacuation of 21 people when false ceilings collapsed in their building, and the temporary closure of the A9 intersection at Le Boulou.

Prefecture refuses wind turbine farm overlooking Lake Caramany

After six years of protests the anti-wind farm collectives have finally won their case and the prefecture have declared that they are rejecting an application to construct 3 125metre high wind turbines in Trilla. The application is rejected on the grounds that, being in the middle of the Corbières-Fenouillèdes natural park, it will affect flight corridors of birds, hunting areas and breeding sites for protected birds including the griffon vulture and the golden eagle. Other reptiles and wildlife would also be at risk, not to mention the visual degradation of the territory. Over the years the association fighting this project have gathered nearly 1500 paper signatures and over 10,000 people had signed an online petition. While they are relieved at this news they are not yet lowering their guard as a similar project is proposed on the ridges of Bélesta.

And finally…..

At the end of the evening in Canet an employee of a local bar was in the process of depositing rubbish in the communal waste bin when she spotted a hand waving from the bottom of the container. These bins are actually buried in the ground so when the emergency services arrived to rescue the man they were surprised to find that he was completely uninjured and had fallen while trying to retrieve his bank card. Apparently the man had been spotted leaning into the bin moments earlier and had been warned by the police that it was dangerous – but obviously had not taken their advice.