French and Riviera News Friday 9th August 2019

Local

Food poisoning - According to local media eight employees from the hotel Belle Rives in Juan les Pins have been struck down by food poisoning. Emergency services were called to the establishment on Thursday afternoon after members of staff suffered from headaches, nausea and vomiting. By late afternoon in a statement from the direction, it was confirmed that staff members concerned had been treated and were sent home.

Trafficked cigarettes - Two young people aged 17 and 18 have been arrested near Avignon where they were on vacation. The arrest was made in connection with an investigation into the intoxication of six young people in northwestern France from trafficked cigarettes. According to reports the victims were all approached in the same way with a stranger offering them cigarettes containing a substance which according to experts is “400 times more powerful than cannabis”. After a few puffs, the victims lost consciousness. When they woke up, they realized that their phone had been stolen. Police have called for vigilance.

Tramline - Line two of the tramway in Nice came to a standstill on Thursday morning following a technical fault. The service was suspended between Magnan and Nice Etoile shortly after 8am for nearly two hours.

Prison sentence and fine - A brother and sister have been handed a nine-month suspended prison sentence along with a fine of 56,000 euros after being stopped at Nice International Airport last Sunday. According to reports the pair both Algerian nationals had arrived from Dubai and were found to be in possession of 185 kilos of hookah tobacco, 286 packs cigarettes and 80 Samsung mobile phones.

Fire - A fire which broke out on the university campus at La Garde in the Var has been brought under control. Nearly 6000 square meters of land was destroyed after the fire broke out on Thursday afternoon. Residents were evacuated during the intervention from firefighters.

Road accident - Five people including two children have been injured in a road accident on the A8 motorway. The accident occurred on Thursday shortly after 4pm westbound between Nice and Cannes. Traffic was down to two lanes following the accident with long tail backs while emergency services intervened.

Alain Delon - Legendary French actor Alain Delon has reportedly suffered a stroke a few weeks ago and is currently "resting" in Switzerland. 83-year-old Delon known for his roles in films such as The Swimming Pool and Purple Noon, received an honorary Palme D'or award at the 72nd Cannes Film Festival in May.

French director dies - L’enfant terrible of French cinema French director Jean-Pierre Mocky, has died at the age of 90. The author and director of 66 feature films between 1959 and 2017, Jean-Pierre Mocky, died on Thursday, August 8. His most emblematic film will remain The 1984 Arbitrator. Jean Pierre Mocky was born in 1933 in Nice.  

National

Notre Dame Cathedral - French authorities have started decontaminating schools in Paris that were found to have unsafe levels of lead following the blaze at the Notre Dame Cathedral, as part of efforts to protect children from risks of poisoning. Authorities in the French capital ordered a deep clean at schools near the cathedral last month. The decontamination work is expected to be completed before students go back to school in September.

Business

Uber Technologies reported a record $5.2 billion loss and revenue that fell short of Wall Street targets on Thursday as growth in its core ride-hailing business slowed, sending its shares down 6%. The company said a price war in the United States was easing and that an important measure of profitability topped its target but slowing revenue growth raised questions about Uber’s ability to expand and fend off competition.

The decision to pull Britain out of the Interrail scheme has been reversed after a public outcry. It comes a day after the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) said UK train companies would stop accepting Interrail and Eurail passes from 2020. RDG said it had renewed talks with Eurail Group, the company running the programmes, after "strong reaction to news of our departure".

More than 300,000 people are to receive some money after the building society admitted breaking rules on overdraft alerts. Nationwide has been ordered to refund over 320,000 personal current account customers for failings on overdraft charges. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the lender was to hand back a total of £6m for breaking rules which demand people receive a text alert before banks charge them for unarranged overdrafts. The aim of the message is to give customers time to take action to avoid unexpected charges.

Sport

Cricket - South Africa batsman Hashim Amla has announced his retirement from international cricket at the age of 36. He is the only South Africa batsman to score a Test triple hundred - 311 not out against England in 2012. Amla was South Africa Test captain between 2014 and 2016, the team's first permanent non-white captain.

Golf - Tiger Woods endured a difficult return as he shot a four-over 75 in the first of the PGA Tour's play-off events at Liberty National in New Jersey. Woods was playing his first round since missing the cut in The Open last month.

Formula One - Mexico will remain on the Formula 1 calendar for three more years after a deal was agreed to expand the schedule to a record 22 races next season. The race will change its name to the Mexico City Grand Prix from 2020. Mexico returned to the schedule in 2015 after 23 years but faced an uncertain future, with the government suggesting funds might be allocated elsewhere. New races will take place in Vietnam and the Netherlands from 2020. This year's Mexican Grand Prix takes place in Mexico City in October.

Weather

Clear skies with highs of 29 degrees along the coast in Monaco, Nice, Cannes and Juan les Pins, up to 32 degrees in land in Villars sur Var. In the Var highs of 32 in Saint Agulf, Frejus, Hyeres and Le Lavandou reaching 34 degrees at Brignoles inland. A moderate south westerly wind.

This evening going down to 18 degrees in the Var and 22 in the Alpes Maritimes with clear skies.

The outlook for the weekend remaining the same with clear skied and highs of 34 degrees with storms forecast from  Monday.

Finally 

Would you wear shorts and a trainers on the big day? Hundreds of comments have been published on social media after a photo of one groom doing just that, as people joked he was ‘mowing the lawn at 2pm, getting married at 3pm’

Hand-in-hand with his bride the groom cuts a smart appearance on his upper half, dressed in a white dress shirt and peach coloured tie.

However, he has gone against traditional formal wear, choosing to pair it with cream cotton shorts and trainers, finished with a pair of sports socks.

Meanwhile his bride has stuck to a classic lace bridal gown, albeit opting for a peach shade over traditional white.

The photo was flooded with hundreds comments from Facebook users at a loss as to why he had chosen such an informal ensemble.

 

 

 

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