AND HERE IS THE NEWS…
….a quick glance at the latest local news with Caroline Manson
Body found near Collioure beach
At 8pm last Thursday, firefighters were called out to retrieve a body seen floating in the sea near the Place des Batteries, between Collioure and Port-Vendres. Although the victim has not yet been formally identified, it is said to be the body of a man around 70 – 80 years old. His clothes were found on the beach nearby and although a post mortem is to be carried out, the hypothesis is that he suffered a malaise while swimming, and drowned.
Mystery following closure of Avenue de la Gare, Perpignan
On Friday 16th June, firefighters and the police closed the busy Avenue de la Gare in Perpignan for more than one hour, and surrounded a building with cars and a large pivot ladder truck. Apparently they had been called out because a male individual was threatening to commit suicide. They entered the building to investigate the individual’s apartment, and found nothing. They did discover a hatchway in the ceiling and believe that the man may well have made his escape via the roof. Research is still ongoing into the incident but not further details have yet been released.
Water heater explodes in Llupia
At 2.40am on Friday the 5 residents of a house in Llupia were awakened by a big explosion. Their water heater had blown up, causing a fire, and also spreading hot water everywhere. 23 firefighters intervened and managed to contain the fire but the explosion had caused significant damage throughout the house and the family had to evacuate to a nearby hotel. Apparently the heater had suffered a ‘malfunction’.
Additional water problems for 4 villages
At the beginning of the year it was announced that the well supplying water for Corbère, Corbère-les-Cabanes, Bouleternère and Saint-Michel-de-Llotes had run dry, and for several weeks local residents were supplied with bottled water by the municipality. Last week it was announced that a new agricultural borehole had been found and inaugurated – but sadly just a few days later letters were delivered to all residents advising that due to a defective seal the water is now not considered drinkable. Technicians are working on the pipeline and while the tap water is considered usable for ‘hygiene and common use’, residents must continue to drink bottled water.
Palau-del-Vidre has new speed limit
Despite installing speed bumps and chicanes to slow down traffic, vehicles continue to drive too quickly through the town of Palau-del-Vidre so the the Mayor has now decided to make the entire town a 30kmh zone. Despite the fact there have been no accidents to date, he states that 50kmh is too fast for an old town where some of the streets are rather narrow. Palau also has a surprisingly high volume of traffic as several thousand people pass through everyday between Les Albères and Perpignan. Palau-del-Vidre is the second town in the region to become a “Ville 30”, following the example of Sorède which reduced its speed limit in 2017.
Fatal accident on the A9 in La Jonquera
On Saturday night a motorist travelling from Spain suddenly decided to make a U-turn as he approached the Le Boulou Péage. He sped off at high speed, in the wrong direction on the A9, and on the outskirts of La Jonquera he hit a car head-on. The occupant, a 61 year old Spanish man, could do nothing to avoid hitting this car travelling in the wrong direction and died instantly. The driver of the first car was arrested at the scene, having only been slightly injured, and is said to be a man of French nationality who was carrying narcotics.
And finally…
Residents near La Palme were delighted when a group of 50 caravans and some 250 people were moved on from the illegal camp site they had been occupying for 15 days. They were not so delighted by the mess that they left. Apart from vast quantities of hedge trimmings (left by the ‘qualified craftsmen’ who offered garden services in the department), they discovered hundreds of plastic bottles, inflatable pools, broken chairs, a washing machine and even a rooster.
