A fire broke out in a kindergarten in Lille on Thursday evening around 8 p.m., without causing any injuries.
Firefighters quickly arrived on site to try to save the Béranger-Hachette nursery school, in the Faubourg de Béthune district.
If they managed to save
"two-thirds of the building"
, they were however the target of several mortar fire, reports the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service on Twitter.
Read also: Tourcoing: a fourth consecutive night of violence
At around 8:15 p.m., witnesses alerted the emergency services claiming to have seen people enter the Béranger-Hachette school and then to have seen smoke emanating from it.
The fire then threatens a third of the building,
"with significant risks of propagation".
It was then that the firefighters came under several mortar fire, requiring the intervention of the national and municipal police.
“This presence will quickly relieve the tension, leaving the firefighters the opportunity to work by establishing three nozzles.
They will take control of the fire shortly after 9 p.m. ”
, continues the SDIS.
At around 9:30 p.m., excavation operations continued.
In a tweet, the mayor of Lille, Martine Aubry denounced these acts, also claiming that it was an arson.
“Arson this evening in a school in Lille. I strongly condemn this act which attacks a place so essential for children, a place of education and emancipation, a living symbol of the Republic ”.
According to information from the Actu.fr information site, students will not be able to be accommodated in the establishment for the start of the school year because of the damage, but will be received in other schools.
The metropolis of Lille has been plagued for several days by agitated nights with the fire of two fireworks and clashes with the police, especially in Tourcoing. About twenty people were arrested. The firefighters have also indicated that they want to file a complaint.