AND HERE IS THE NEWS…
….a quick glance at the latest local news with Caroline Manson
Fish rescued from lake as water levels drop
Fishermen have been called out to carry out a rescue operation at Clairfont Park in Toulouges as the water levels became too low to sustain the quantity of fish as the canal that flows into this lake has been requisitioned for farmers. Nearly 300 fish were removed and taken to other lakes in the region where the levels are still good – such as Villelongue-dels-Monts or Saint-Estève. More than 15 similar operations have been carried out since the start of the year as either fishermen or members of the public call the authorities to report fish in distress.
Young couple robbed at knifepoint
A young couple were strolling through the streets of Perpignan after an evening at the cinema when they were approached by a young man who threatened them with a knife before demanding their mobile phones. Luckily for the couple, the crime had been recorded by the city CCTV network and the police were able to give a photograph of the perpetrator to the anti-crime brigade (BAC) – who seemed to recognise him as they arrested him immediately. Unfortunately the phones had already been sold, but the youth will face the judge shortly.
Thief arrested 1 hour after release from police station
A 40 year old man has secured his place in the record book of Perpignan police station having managed to get arrested twice in just two days. On April 28th he was arrested after grabbing money out of an ATM when a client was trying to withdraw money. He was quickly arrested and taken to the police station on Avenue de Grande-Bretagne, where he admitted he was addicted to cocaine and was stealing to fund his habit. He was freed the next day with a summons to attend court – but on passing a young lady sitting on a low wall he could not resist plunging his hand into her handbag and stealing 50 euros. One hour later he was back in custody and was held to face an immediate court appearance.
Car crashes into mini-golf site
At around 5am on Saturday morning a car was approaching the roundabout at the entrance to St Cyprien when the driver lost control. The car crashed through the barrier of the Tropical mini-golf parc and ended up on its roof in the middle of one of the ‘greens’. Luckily the 5 occupants of the car managed to get out, and despite the state of the car only two of the occupants were slightly injured. The gendarmes are conducting an investigation into the incident.
Lorry fire on A9
On Saturday afternoon the driver of an HGV realised that his trailer was on fire – his overheating brake pads had caused the load of compacted paper to ignite. He managed to stop and detach the trailer but traffic was disrupted for a distance of 5 kilometres between junctions 41 and 42 of the A9. It took 18 firefighters several hours to extinguish the fire, which had spread to the surrounding vegetation.
Collioure bell tower scaffolding removed
Having been covered in scaffolding for more than a year of renovations, the famous bell tower of Collioure has finally been unveiled again. The project was to clean the bells (of which there are now 4 rather than the 2 before the work commenced) and the replacement of the granite ball. Work continues on the Notre Dame des Anges church and the total project will hopefully be completed by the end of 2026, at a total cost of six million euros.
Sale of ‘above-ground’ pools prohibited in the P-O
In addition to the many restrictions already in place because of the drought, it has now been announced that the sale of above ground pools will very shortly be prohibited. A spokesperson for Piscines Ibiza in Perpignan says that he can understand this decision as these pools often have a very bad, or even no filter system, meaning that people often have to empty and refill their pools after just 10 days. They also pointed out that unfortunately there is nothing to stop anybody from buying one from Narbonne, or Amazon, but that in-ground pools were a much more economic option in that a traditional (8 x 4) pool consumes an average of just 15m3 of water per year and that perhaps the authorities are wrong to target pool owners as they account for just 0.15% of overall water consumption – a drop in the ocean. The latest prefectural decree has been announced today (Tuesday 9th May) and will come into force the next day.
And finally…
They say you can’t go wrong investing in bricks and mortar – so why not buy an entire village? A fully restored hamlet perched on the heights of Collioure has just come onto the market – 500m² of buildings including renovated farmhouses, outbuildings, pools, hot tub, tennis court, vegetable gardens etc in 23 hectares of land facing the sea. The sales details stress the fact that it is totally ‘autonomous’ with energy efficient equipment – obviously something to consider if you are spending 3.2 million euros…
