A grain processing plant belonging to the Soufflet Alimentaire group and located in Valenciennes (North) was hit by a fire overnight from Friday to Saturday, we learned from concordant sources.
The flames ravaged "a warehouse of 1,000 square meters containing cardboard boxes" on this "industrial site nested in the urban fabric," a spokesman for the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (Sdis) told AFP. Around 4:20 a.m., 78 firefighters and 35 vehicles were mobilized to fight the fire.
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The incident and the smoke left "a slight injured person, a local resident" and led to the evacuation of "25 employees and 20 local residents" , who were taken care of in a room made available by the town hall.
The first analyzes carried out on site indicated "no trace of pollution" of the Scheldt, the river on the edge of which the site is located. "For now, the pollution is contained on the site," said the spokesman for Sdis.
