Evening Update Thursday 14 November

The evening rush hour is being disrupted by severe weather this evening. Both the Var and the Alpes Maritimes are on a Meteo France Orange Weather alert for large waves and coastal flooding – until 1pm tomorrow in the Var and until 6am in the Alpes Maritimes. It then goes down to a Yellow warning in the Alpes Maritimes. Waves of over 3 metres are expected in places. The municipality of Nice has closed all parks and gardens in the city and access to beaches and the coastal path has also been prohibited. The Prefect of the Alpes Maritimes has activated the departmental operational center and has called for people to avoid any travel or walking near the coast and to act with “the greatest vigilance” during this evening’s rush hour. The Var is also on Orange alert for storms and heavy rain until 10.00 tonight. And there’s a yellow alert for high winds until 10pm. In the Alpes Maritimes there are yellow alerts for storms, heavy rain and icy conditions until the early hours of tomorrow morning and for avalanches until at least 3pm tomorrow. You can get more details at meteofrance.com

Alpes Maritimes Deputy Eric Ciotti has announced that he will not stand in the municipal elections in Nice against Christian Estrosi. M. Ciotti announced his decision on Facebook earlier today.

Residents of a building in La Ciotat have narrowly escaped injury after the roof collapsed this afternoon. Eight people were safely evacuated from the building on rue des Poilus shortly before the roof gave way. It’s thought that the heavy rains may have contributed to the collapse.

Health workers have been staging a demonstration in Nice today. They met at lunchtime on the Place Garibaldi and then marched through nearby streets. Reports put the number of protestors at about 150. It’s part of a nationwide day of action by health workers and care givers to protest at lack of resources and understaffing.

Emergency doctors service SOS Médecins have resumed operations in the Moulins district of Nice. Responses to calls in the area were suspended last week after a doctor was attacked. New measures have been put in place to enable a doctor to have a police escort if required.

Traffic was very disrupted on the A50 motorway, in both directions early this afternoon after an accident between Saint-Cyr and La Ciotat. Recovery operations were made more difficult because of bad weather in the area.

A public meeting is being held tonight at 6:30 pm in Cagnes-sur-Mer to discuss the proposed line 4 of the Nice tramway. Line 3 was officially inaugurated yesterday and Line 4 is currently scheduled to be completed in 2026. The meeting is at the Espace Center, 5 avenue de Verdun in Cagnes-sur-Mer.

Firefighters have been battling a large fire at the city hall in Annecy in the Haute-Savoie. The fire has consumed a large part of the roof of the building but no injuries have been reported.

 

BUSINESS

The 19 countries in the Eurozone collectively reported growth of 0.2% in the three months to the end of September, which was in line with expectations. Growth in the previous quarter was also 0.2%, according to the new numbers from the European Union's statistics office Eurostat. Meanwhile, the Germany economy grew by just 0.1% in the last quarter, narrowly avoiding a recession, which is usually defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

Nike is to stop sales through Amazon so it can focus on selling directly to customers. Nike said it would continue to invest in what it called "distinctive" partnerships with other retailers and platforms. However, according to reports, Amazon has been preparing for the move, recruiting third-party sellers with Nike products so that the merchandise is still available on the site.

Burberry says its sales in Hong Kong have seen a "double digit" percentage fall in sales as a result of the continuing unrest. However, the company still reported a 5% rise in revenue to £1.28bn for the six months to 28 September. Adjusted operating profit rose by 14%.

 

SPORT

Cricket…Pakistan will play a Test at home for the first time since 2009 after announcing a two-match series against Sri Lanka in December. There hasn’t been a Test in Pakistan since the Sri Lanka team bus was attacked in Lahore 10 years ago. The two matches will form part of the World Test Championship.

Australia captain Tim Paine says the mental wellbeing of players takes priority over cricket after batsman Will Pucovski became the third Australia player to take a break from the game. Pucovski asked not to be considered for Test selection against Pakistan to focus on his mental health. Glenn Maxwell and Nic Maddinson are also taking a break from cricket.

Cycling… There is "optimism" Gerben Thijssen will recover from his heavy crash on the first night of racing at the Ghent Six Day, according to the Belgian rider's team Lotto Soudal. The 21-year-old fractured three ribs and a collarbone in the crash as well as suffering several small brain haemorrhages and is in intensive care.

Rugby Union… Scottish Rugby Union has "expressed its regret" over its conduct at the World Cup and will not contest a £70,000 fine, according to World Rugby. The penalty was imposed by an independent disputes committee after SRU chief executive Mark Dodson criticised the threatened cancellation of Scotland's final pool game against Japan and complained of World Rugby's "rigidity".

Football… There are several European Championship qualifying games tonight with England at home to Montenegro in Group A. France play Moldova in Group H.

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