Some 250 motorists were trapped on the A10 motorway after an accident near Janville-en-Beauce (Eure-et-Loir) which blocked traffic in the Paris-Orléans direction, Monday evening.
The collision, which resulted in two minor injuries, occurred around 11:00 p.m. About fifty firefighters, according to the Eure-et-Loir Operational Fire and Rescue Center (Codis 28), were dispatched to the scene.
A truck carrying shoes hit a utility vehicle. This shock caused a fire in the truck trailer. The fire was extinguished at around 4 am according to the firefighters, but the highway was cut off due to the presence of "material on the roadway".
A cap of 250 cars
Quickly, a three-kilometer traffic jam, or around 250 vehicles, formed on the highway, according to Vinci Autoroutes. "Since 3 am [in the morning], we have been evacuating light vehicles via an access portal that has been opened to allow our customers to get out, but heavy goods vehicles do not have the same agility" said a spokesperson for the company. At 9 a.m., all vehicles had not yet been evacuated.
Janville, Janville-en-Beauce, France
The accident happened this Monday evening around 11 p.m. just after exit 12 ... https://t.co/gQECXSDgYG
The stranded motorists “were refueled in the middle of the night. We gave them blankets and lunch boxes with things to eat, ”added Vinci Autoroutes.
A version contradicted by a motorist questioned by France Bleu Orléans: "It's been nine hours since I was there, refrigerated, and I saw no one, no blanket, no water, no food. And I'm not the only one! "She explained, adding:" I don't want to moan to moan, but we are still customers of the highway, we are entitled to a minimum. "