French and Riviera News Wednesday 10th August 2022

News

Body of teenager found in lake Saint-Cassien - A teenager has been found dead in the lake of Saint-Cassien in the Pays de Fayence in the Var. Emergency services, alerted by witnesses, discovered the body of the 17-year-old on Tuesday evening. The circumstances are not yet known.

Dengue fever - A case of dengue fever has been detected in Fayence in the Var. Regional Health Agency employees have been going door to door to warn residents in the vicinity of the outbreak and identify areas of stagnant water. The agency will carry out mosquito control on a perimeter of 200m around the contaminated house on Thursday or Friday. Detailed instructions for local residents can be found on the Fayence Town Hall's Facebook page.

Monkeypox - From today Wednesday August 10th, five pharmacies have been authorized to vaccinate against monkeypox in France. One of them is in Marseille and another in Fréjus. This is an experiment in five pharmacies in the cities of Marseille, Fréjus, Lille and Paris which are located near hospitals capable of storing vaccines at -80°C. For the moment, appointments can only be made via Doctolib and the patient will be directed to the nearest vaccination site, whether it is a vaccination centre, hospital or pharmacy. As of August 4, more than 2,400 cases of monkeypox have been identified in France, including 152 residing in the PACA region. It is the fourth most affected region in France.

Heat Wave - Along with 18 other departments in France the Var and the Alpes Maritimes remains on a yellow heat wave alert. Meteo France has forecast thunderstorms from Sunday. As it stands the summer of 2022 is set to be a record for the number of consecutive heat wave days. The previous record at a national level dates back to 1983, with 23 days.

Gorges du Verdon becomes inaccessible – Meanwhile, following a decision announced by the prefect swimming and navigation in the Gorges du Verdon has been prohibited. The historic decision comes as water levels are reported to be dropping by up to 6cm a day.

Forest fire resumes in the Gironde - 3,500 people have been evacuated and more than 1,000 hectares have been destroyed in the Gironde as forest fires resume. The prefecture has called for the public to avoid the sector in the face of a deteriorating situation. The renewed outbreaks come after the region was ravaged by forest fires in July.

Beluga Whale successfully taken out of the river Seine - After six hours and the intervention of 80 people, including around twenty divers the beluga whale, which had become stranded for almost a week in the river Seine has been successfully taken out of the water at around 4am this morning. Its state of health was said to be “stationary”.

French MP calls for the right to vote in local elections for all foreigners - French MP Sacha Houlié has called for all foreigners in France to be given the right to vote in local elections. The proposal of the Macronist MP has provoked criticism from France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. On Tuesday Houlié presented the proposal saying, “that the recognition was long overdue” and that it was “time to grant the right to vote as well as stand as a candidate in local elections" to all foreigners, even non-Europeans.

Local MP for the Alpes-Maritimes Eric Ciotti also expressed his opposition towards the proposal calling it an “extremely dangerous move” adding that the vote must be linked to nationality. Asked about the subject in 2019, French President Emmanuel Macron had preferred to promote access to French nationality rather than granting the right to vote to foreigners in local elections.

French President and Boris Johnson hold telephone conversation – Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron and Boris Johnson have spoken of their "comradeship" and “cooperation in recent years” in a telephone conversation on Tuesday. A few days ahead of the departure of Boris Johnson, the French President and the British Prime Minister stressed the importance of continuing to “support Ukraine for as long as necessary” and thanked each other for “their friendship camaraderie” feeling that their “cooperation had made a difference on many international issues”.

This year’s Monaco Yacht Show - A list of yachts which will be present during this year’s Monaco Yacht Show has been unveiled by the organisers. The annual international show dedicated to the world of superyachts returns over four days at the end of September. Inaugurated in 1991, the Monaco Yacht Show (MIS) is divided into two main exhibition spaces: afloat and dockside. More than 100 superyachts and 50 luxury tenders will be presented, from September 28th to October 1st, by the most renowned builders and brokers in the i