AND HERE IS THE NEWS…

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

Housefire in Maureillas

Late on Thursday night fire broke out in a house in Maureillas-las-Illas.  The house was occupied by a 45 year old woman and her 9 year old son.  The flames spread quickly to a mattress and the woman was burned trying to get it out of the house, she was treated by emergency services and evacuated to Perpignan Hospital.  The family’s neighbour, a 72 year old lady, was also treated for smoke inhalation.  The house is said to be in a very unstable condition and a reconnaissance using drones has been made, but so far the authorities believe the cause of the fire to be accidental.

Reduced speed limit on motorway?

In an effort to reduce pollution levels the city authorities are proposing to reduce the speed limit on the A9 motorway from 130kmh to 110kmh.  This would affect the section that crosses Perpignan, ie between the South and North tolls.  The decision does not rest solely with the Mairie but has to be discussed with Vinci autoroutes, so it is far from being agreed at this stage.  There is also the proposal to limit the speed to just 30kmh in all the city streets, which is still under discussion.

Young driver facing 19 years in prison for causing fatality

A 22 year old Frenchman is about to face trial in Girona following an incident dating back to June 2023.  He had been returning from Spain on the A9 with 15 kilos of cannabis and 1 kilo hashish (estimated value of 32,000€) when he spotted the police waiting to carry out checks at Le Boulou.  To escape them he decided to make a u-turn and drove for 15 kilometres against oncoming traffic back in the direction of Spain.  Shortly after crossing the border he hit another car, driven by a 61 year old man, who died instantly.  The Spanish authorities will be charging the driver for murder as they say he was aware of the consequences of his actions and therefore the death was by no way an accident.  They are also calling for a 10 year driving ban and 400,000€ in compensation for the victim’s family.

Lorry blocks road between Elne and Montescot

On Friday afternoon a lorry laden with wood was en route to the Elne depot when for no apparent reason the driver lost control and slid into a ditch at the side of the road.  Fortunately he wasn’t injured but the D612 was closed for some considerable time as the emergency services were called to extricate the vehicle and load.

River Agly is flowing again

The River Agly, which throughout the summer had become a symbol of the drought affecting the department, is now flowing again.  The last time there was so much water was at the end of October after a much awaited heavy rainfall, but this time the inflow of water is due to good management further upstream at the Caramany Dam.  In December the reservoir was filled thanks to heavy rain (130mm registered at St Paul de Fenouillet) and they were able to release the overflow downstream and into the water tables, and now water can be seen flowing all the way down to Claira.  

Monster traffic jams on A9 again

On Thursday January 2nd a police check caused massive traffic jams between Spain and the Le Boulou toll.  Traffic was almost at a standstill and Vinci Autoroutes were announcing six kilometres of jams.  Traffic was exceptionally heavy at this period as many people were returning from holidays in Spain, and Spanish motorists were also flocking to France as it is part of their holiday period.  People trying to cross via Le Perthus on the D900 were also faced with long queues of traffic.

And finally…

The eating of a Galette des Rois is a New Year tradition in France – (this is a pastry and frangipane pie with a little ceramic ‘bean’ hidden inside and whoever gets the slice with the ‘bean’ in is crowned King or Queen for the day).  This year the bakeries of “Les Pains du Soleil” in Cabestany and Saint-Estève have upped the stakes and have hidden a diamond worth 850€ in two of their Galettes.  Chew carefully – it would be a shame to swallow one!