News
Man falls from 6th floor of Carlton Hotel in Cannes - A man in his thirties has been hospitalised in a critical condition after falling from the 6th floor at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes. The incident occurred at around 5:30am on Wednesday morning. The victim a Saudi hotel guest reportedly suddenly fell from the 6th floor of the hotel located on the Croisette, landing on a marble table located on the garden terrace on the ground floor, opposite the sea. According to witnesses, the ma would have jumped over several balconies going from one to another before falling. Police are investigating and the victim who has undergone multiple operations, is yet to be questioned by police. The hotel had recently opened after two years of closure for renovation work.
Heatwave - The Alpes-Maritimes and the Var have been placed on a yellow heatwave alert from today Thursday 17th August, with highs of 35 ° C expected locally. The regions join 27 other departments in France which are preparing for the most significant heat wave of the summer, all be it rather late in the season. 35 ° C is forecast for the hinterland with temperatures exceeding 30 ° C along the coast and dropping just below 25 ° C at night. The high temperatures are expected to affect much of France over the coming days. Meteo France said that the heat episode will start mainly from Friday and will last until the beginning of next week with a peak of intensity expected around Monday to Tuesday.
Ceremony to thank the work of the prefect delegate Xavier Pelletier in the aftermath of Storm Alex - A ceremony has taken place in Tende, in the hills behind Nice, to thank Xavier Pelletier prefect delegate, for his work and dedication during the post-storm Alex reconstruction of the region. After two years and 10 months Pelletier will take up his new duties as prefect of Loir-et-Cher on Monday August 21st marking the end of a chapter. 150 people were present in front of the town hall on Wednesday evening in the presence of various mayors and elected official of the Roya valley to thank and praise his presence in helping to rebuild the region and businesses with the mayor of Tende calling him the “miracle prefect”. Storm Alex brought record breaking flooding and devastation to many areas in the region. The flooding in the south of France was reported to be the worst for at least 120 years, when records began. The 2,000 inhabitants of the village of Tende, perched high in the Roya valley, were cut off from the rest of the world, with no running water or electricity. A least 15 people in the Alpes-Maritimes department lost their lives to Storm Alex. In some places, whole sections of the mountain disappeared. Hundreds of buildings and roads were destroyed. Local authorities estimated the material damage at over €1.5 billion, with 13,000 people affected.
Road accidents - While the number of fatal road accidents in the Var seems to have dropped this year according to recent data, accidents involving motorcycles have caused the most deaths. Of the 29 people killed on the roads in the region, since the beginning of the year, half been at the time driving a two-wheeler. The majority (33%) of fatal accidents are the result of excessive speed, regardless of the mode of transport. The second factor is the consumption of narcotics, implicated in 19% of fatal road accidents, followed by alcohol consumption (11%) and dangerous overtaking (4%).
Don’t pick flowers - French police have warned hikers in the French Alpes that they will be fined hundreds of euros if they pick too many blooming plants on their summer walks. The local authorities said 20 hikers had been given verbal warnings and told they would be fined up to €750 if they broke the regulations again. While not all the mountain plants and flowers are officially protected, conservationists say the destruction of local flora is putting at risk the diversity of the natural heritage of the Savoie and the wider French Alps.
Book release from former French President - In his new book "Le Temps des combats" which is due out on August 22nd, former head of state Nicolas Sarkozy mentions, among other things, Ukraine, Libya, immigration and even justice while wishing France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin “to take the final step leading to the Elysée”. The book looks back on part, at his years as the head of the State, between 2009 and 2011. Sarkozy evokes the war in Ukraine, the pension reform, immigration, but also the presidential election of 2027. Nicolas Sarkozy praises the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin and on the subject of the war in Ukraine, he says "it is the duty of the French president to keep the dialogue with Russia open”, adding that "Ukraine has a vocation as a bridge between Europe and Russia”.
Emmanuel Macron in Bormes-les Mimosas – Finally, French President Emmanuel Macron will today Thursday 17th August, participate in the commemorations of the 79th anniversary of the liberation of the city of Bormes-les-Mimosas in the Var, a ceremonial occasion which has been turned into a pre-return to politics. These ceremonies marking the liberation of Bormes-les-Mimosas on August 17th, 1944, have become a must for presidential summers, preceding the resumption of the Council of Ministers by just a few days. Emmanuel Macron will speak at 7pm this evening in Bormes-les-Mimosas. The President of the Republic will underline how much the liberators of 1944 formed a French youth in love with freedom and collective overcoming, against all inevitability.
Business
In one of its biggest anti-money laundering investigations Singapore police have seized about S$1bn ($735m; £578m) - including luxury homes, cars and cash. Among the items seized in the raid were luxury cars, designer handbags and $17m (£13.3m) in cash. Police arrested ten people in the operation, all of whom held foreign passports. Raids of this size are rare in Singapore, which has one of the lowest crime rates in the world.
Inflation in the UK dropped to 6.8% in the year to July from 7.9% in June. It's the second month in a row that the rate of inflation - how quickly prices are rising - has dropped sharply, and it's now at a 15-month low. The latest figure was driven by a reduction in the energy price cap and food costs rising less rapidly - particularly milk, bread and cereals. But UK inflation remains stubbornly high overall compared to many other nations, and well above the Bank of England's target rate of 2%.
Bank of Ireland technical faults that allowed people to withdraw funds despite having little or no money in their accounts led to officers being sent to some cash machines, gardaí (Irish police) have said. Large queues formed at many cash machines in the Republic of Ireland on Tuesday after word of the glitch spread. Posts on social media also appeared to show officers seemingly deployed to cash machines. The bank said on Wednesday morning that the issues had been resolved and apologised for the disruption. It warned transfers and withdrawals would still be applied to customers’ accounts.
Sport
Football – England are through to the Women’s World Cup final after beating Australia 3-1 on Wednesday. England will be playing Spain in the final on Sunday.
Rugby Union - Head coach Gregor Townsend has said that Scotland take confidence and a "nothing to lose mentality" to the Rugby World Cup. The Scots kick-off against defending champions South Africa and also face Grand-Slam winning Ireland in Pool B.
Weather
A heatwave warning is in place from today with temperatures expected to rise over the coming days and into next week. Sunny, highs of 29 degrees in Monaco, Nice and Saint-Tropez. 30 degrees in Cannes. A moderate breeze. This evening going down to 21 degrees along the coast with clear skies.
The outlook for Friday and the weekend remaining fine with highs of 30 degrees along the coast and 35 degrees inland.
Sunrise 06.34am
Sunset 08.34pm
Beach Weather
Nice – Sea temperature 26 degrees. Air temperature 28 degrees. UV level 9.
Saint-Tropez - Sea temperature 26 degrees.. Air temperature 31 degrees. UV level 9.
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