Evening Update Monday 29 June 2020

Local authorities have warned of the dangers of swimming and jumping or diving into shallow water after two incidents in Saint Laurent du Var. A ninety year old woman drowned whilst swimming about ten metres from the beach this morning. The lifeguard of a private beach initially rescued the woman but emergency services were unable to revive her. Authorities have advised people not to swim alone, especially if they are elderly, and to swim at a supervised beach and not too far from the shore. Meanwhile, authorities have warned of the dangers of diving into water which is too shallow. A 13 year old was taken to hospital after he jumped into the sea in an area at Landsberg beach where there is very little water. He was conscious when emergency services arrived and could feel his limbs, complaining of mild back pain but was taken to the Lenval hospital as a precaution.

Christian Estrosi has said that the people of Nice “remain his priority” after being elected for a third term as Mayor. Mr Estrosi won the second round of the municipal elections with a comfortable 59 percent of the vote. His nearest rival, Philippe Vardon of Marine Le Pen’s RN party, scored 21.29 percent.

Two people have been  injured, one seriously,  in a road accident between Cogolin and La Mole in the Var this morning. The accident happened on the RN98 near the Chateau Tremouries. One of the injured was airlifted to hospital.

Rescuers have located a group of hikers who were missing in the Var. Six people set out from near La Ciotat yesterday afternoon but were reported missing. Rescuers finally located them, unharmed, at about 4.00am this morning.

A brush fire broke out near Signes in the west of the Var this afternoon. About 4,000 square metres of undergrowth was destroyed in the blaze. It was brought under control rapidly by over thirty firefighters and two water bombing helicopters.

A reminder that you'll have to pay for parking on the streets of Nice as from this Wednesday during certain hours. Free on-street parking was introduced during the coronavirus crisis but paid parking is being resumed from 1 July. There are still some exceptions, such as on bank holidays and Sundays, but be sure to check the regulations displayed in the area where you're parking.

In national news, François Fillon and his wife his wife Penelope have been found guilty in their trial regarding fictitious jobs. The former French Prime Minister was sentenced to five years in prison, three of which were suspended, and fined 375,000 euros. He was made ineligible for public office for 10 years. His wife received a three year suspended sentence and was fined 375,000 euros with two years of ineligibilty. Francois Fillon's former substitute in the Sarthe department, Marc Joulaud, was also found guilty. Lawyers for the couple said that they would appeal.

One of France's oldest nuclear power plants is set to be taken out of service tonight. The plant at Fessenheim in Alscace, near the German and Swiss borders, has been in operation for 43 years. It's expected that full dismantling of the plant will take until at least 2040.


BUSINESS

BP has sold its petrochemicals business to Ineos for 5 billion dollars. Ineos said that the acquisition was a good fit with its existing businesses.

Economic sentiment in the Eurozone has risen to a 3 month high, according to a European Commission survey. The index recorded a figure of 75.7 in June compared to 67.5 in May and 64.8 in April. However, June's figure is still lower than before the pandemic began.

Airbus has said that production and deliveries of aircraft will be 40% lower this year and next year than originally planned. Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said that it could be 2025 before production returned to the levels seen before the pandemic.

Two people have been killed and several wounded in an attack on Pakistan's stock exchange in Karachi. Authorities say that four people launched an attack at the main gate of the building but failed to get to the trading floor.

 

SPORT

Motorsports... It's been announced that Mercedes will race in a new black livery for the remainder of this year's Formula 1 season as a sign of the team's commitment to greater diversity and inclusion in motorsport. The team is also launching a diversity and inclusion programme.

Cricket... Joe Root will miss the first Test against West Indies next week to attend the birth of his second child. The Test begins on 8 July but coronavirus restrictions mean that Root would have been unable to leave and immediately rejoin the squad. Ben Stokes will replace Root as captain. It will be the first time that Stokes has captained the England squad.

Football... The Football Association has said that 82 staff members will lose their jobs and 42 staff vacancies will not be filled. The FA says that it's planning for potential financial losses of about £300m. Chief executive Mark Bullingham said that the past few months have "impacted the FA severely" and the Association had "lost a significant amount of money that we can never recoup."

There’s one game in the English Premier League tonight. Crystal Palace are playing Burnley.

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