2023-06-17 17:04:13
It’s time to take stock of the damage in the east of the Charente Maritime and the south of Two Sevresat the epicenter of the “very strong” earthquake felt Friday from Rennes to Bordeaux without causing any casualties. After a tremor of magnitude between 5.3 and 5.8, two aftershocks were recorded on Saturday morning (magnitude 5 and 3.7), according to the French Central Seismological Bureau.
Cracked walls, uninhabitable houses, closed school…
In the village of La Laine (Charente-Maritime), many cracked walls. Stones and tiles lie on the ground and chimneys threaten to fall from the roofs. Dozens of homes have been declared “uninhabitable” by firefighters.
Like that of Tony, a 46-year-old site manager, who is moving in with friends. “We’re going to get things back and then we’re going to try to change our minds,” he said. “We lost everything in the space of 10 seconds”.
In this town, “135 buildings were globally affected by the earthquake” and “170 people who must be relocated”, explained the fire chief; Didier Marcaillou.
“Most of the houses in the center of the town were affected to varying degrees. The church is completely unusable. The school will have to be closed as a precaution, ”said Nicolas Basselier, prefect of Charente-Maritime, on the spot.
Assessments continue on buildings
Similar damage was observed in the surrounding villages, such as Cram-Chaban (Charente-Maritime), where graves were damaged by rock falls from the church overlooking the cemetery. In Saint-Hilaire la-Palud (Deux-Sèvres), the church also suffered and a security perimeter had to be established on Friday evening, forcing residents to evacuate.
In total, 38 people had to be relocated in this sector of southern Deux-Sèvres according to the prefecture.
Two people were slightly injured in this department and “a lot of material damage such as falling rocks, cracks and a partial roof collapse” were noted. Building assessments continue on Saturday, carried out by specialized firefighters who must receive reinforcement from neighboring departments.
Accelerated natural disaster recognition
Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, assured Saturday that the state would “ensure that everyone has access to rehousing” if necessary. “Given the intensity of the earthquake (…), an accelerated natural disaster recognition procedure will be initiated in order to take into account the potential structural damage”, also indicated on Twitter the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin.
The tremor was felt in a large part of the west of the country, from Rennes to Bordeaux and as far as Limoges, generating numerous calls to the emergency services and testimonies on social networks.
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