It is a call for help launched by elected officials. Eight mayors sent a letter to the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, in order to have the state of natural disaster recognized in their municipalities located near La Laigne, and also affected by the earthquake of June 16.
Three months after the earthquake which hit Poitou-Charentes, many residents remain faced with unanswered questions. How to deal with the consequences of the earthquake which sometimes seriously damaged their homes? The mayors of eight municipalities located around the epicenter of the earthquake challenged the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, this summer. They are still waiting for the natural disaster recognition order.
Sylvie Deboeuf lives in the town of La Rochénard, in Deux-Sèvres. Since June 16, she has not been allowed to enter her garage: “The disorders observed are of a structural nature, requiring precautionary and reinforcement measures for the protection of the building in an emergency”, she reads on the expert report produced after the disaster. She is still waiting to begin the work, which could cost more than 100,000 euros. “It worries and it’s disruptive, because it’s our family home where the children were raised, which we bought 50 years ago,” she is alarmed. “If there is no compensation, how can a house be repaired with such a sum?”
Without a natural disaster order in the municipality, all costs remain the responsibility of the municipality. In this village, almost a quarter of the buildings were damaged by the earthquake. The situation is a source of great anxiety for those administered.
“We would really have liked to have explanations to provide to our residents, or even just a deadline, dates, to be able to reassure them”deplores Annick Bamberger, mayor without label of Rochénard.
By writing to the head of government, the councilors hoped to speed up the process. Clément Cohen, the mayor without label of Bourdet, deplores the administrative lengths: “It was the residents who submitted the requests on time. They gave a copy to the town hall, sometimes with important files, photos, everything was transmitted to the natural disaster online site, and we are waiting .”
We have the impression that we are not taken into consideration, we are only five kilometers from the epicenter.
Richard Guignard
Resident of Bourdet
In total, 22 municipalities benefited from the natural disaster order after the earthquake. The processing of a request for recognition of the state of natural disaster can take several months.
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