AND HERE IS THE NEWS…

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

3 tonnes of fish saved from dry river

peche fishing
Illustration / Thibaut Calatayud / Actu Perpignan)

Even after the recent rainstorms, the Agly River is still almost completely dry, apart from occasional pockets of water.  These are not big enough to sustain the remaining fish population so last weekend a major operation was launched by volunteers of the Pyrénées-Orientales fishing federation.  Just upstream of the Rivesaltes SNCF bridge they managed to rescue 3.1 tonnes of fish, mainly carp and catfish.  The fish were then taken up to the Agly dam, which is still full, and released.  

Fatal accident between Canet and Perpignan

gendarme

A 77 year old man died on Friday morning following a collision at 5am on the D617 near the Bompas exit.  The victim’s car rolled over several times and the driver was found trapped in his vehicle suffering from a heart-attack.  Despite rescue efforts he was declared dead at the scene.  The driver of the other vehicle, a rented Audi RS Q8 was arrested and taken to Perpignan Police Station but for the moment no other information has been revealed.

10 tonnes of fruit dumped in front of two supermarkets

apricots

This year appears to have been excellent for the production of apricots and nectarines, but local growers are furious at the fact that many supermarkets have shelves full of imported Spanish fruit.  Gérard Majoral, a peach producer from Thuir and secretary general of the National Federation of Fruit Producers is so furious that he and his colleagues arranged a protest this Saturday, and two trucks dumped nearly 10 tonnes of apricots and nectarines in front of the Intermarché supermarkets in Canohès and Le Soler.  He pointed out that around 400,000 tonnes of peaches are consumed in France each year but only 100,000 tonnes are French produced.  He is suggesting that the supermarkets have a rethink or ‘other actions’ could be carried out in the coming weeks.

New initiative to help with the drought

water

While there is no one sure solution to the catastrophic drought situation in the region, people are trying out any solutions they can.  One such experiment is being carried out by the haulage company Raymondis in Perpignan.  Their tankers are regularly used to transport wine from the P-O up to Bordeaux and usually return empty.  They have now proposed acquiring water from the north to deliver in the region.  The water costs just 1.8 euros per m3 and so far they have brought back 180,000 litres.  The water is not for drinking but is being used for watering crops and animals.

Argelès pool to close for the summer

swimming pool

And yet another result of the drought – the Community of Communes has taken the decision to close the Alberaquatic Pool in Argelès-sur-Mer during the summer season (July 1 to September 8).  This measure will save nearly two million litres of water.  Residents are not all in favour of this, pointing out that the campsite pools are allowed to remain open, but others respond by saying that it is not necessary to have a swimming pool when you are beside the Mediterranean Sea.

Fire near a campsite

fire

On Saturday afternoon a fire broke out in wasteland between Le Barcarès and Saint-Laurent-de-La-Salanque.  Two hectares were burned before the water bomber helicopter and 45 firefighters could put it out.  The fire-fighters secured the nearby Nai’a Village campsite and also a travellers area currently occupied by around 100 families.  The origin of the fire is still unknown.

Feria de Ceret to be cut short

feria ceret

And finally…

A 64 year old woman from Besancon discovered her drunken lover lying on the floor.  She decided to move him onto the bed, but the next day realised that he was actually not just dead drunk, but dead.  She decided not to alert the authorities, for ‘fear of being suspected of murdering him’, and instead consoled herself by taking his credit cards and spending more than 40,000 euros on scratch cards.  She also managed to help herself to payments from the man’s pension. It was only when the man’s estranged daughter checked with a Notaire that the police were called – and they discovered the mummified body of the man lying on the bed, surrounded by bottles.  The woman has been arrested.

scratch cards

Caroline Manson is an independent Property Consultant – for advice on buying, selling, renting or renovating, don’t hesitate to contact her at caroline@perpignan-properties.com

 

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