Creuse Goes Critical

Over 300 members of the emergency services from as far afield as Paris took part in a major radioactive spillage incident this week. Fortunately the exercise was only a simulation of the real thing. The hall at Dun Le Palestel was commandeered by officials to set up a major incident control centre. The exercise lasted around 15 hours and was declared a success by operations manager Hervé Charin. Whilst he said there was room for improvement, he noted that operations like this are essential to highlight any weaknesses in emergency planning. The operation that had taken over 6 months of planning.

Woman Murdered in Limoges

A 35 year old woman was murdered in a savage attack late on the night of 19 May. Kathy Koslowski was a popular figure in the Bar Central, Place de la Republique, Limoges where she worked. Ms Koslowski was also well known in the Haute Vienne town of Bellac where she worked at Le Pub between 2005 and 2008. Ms Koslowski’s former partner, Gilles Bellion, has been arrested and charged with the attack in which the victim received 30 separate stab wounds. There is a long history of domestic violence between the couple and Ms Koslowski had recently left her partner following a violent outburst. It is believed Mr Bellion had failed to come to terms with the separation.

The Bank That Just Said NO

Two masked men attempted an armed robbery at the Couzeix branch of Credit Agricole bank on 20 May. The men left empty handed when staff at the bank informed the men that no cash is kept on the premises.

Panic at the Pumps

Panic buying was seen this week at many petrol stations across the region, with some of the larger supermarket forecourts running dry. The fishermen’s blockades of the ports including La Rochelle and Bordeaux have caused disruption to fuel supplies throughout France as pump prices continue to rise.

Biker Loses Licence

A motorcyclist had his licence removed on the spot after being caught by a mobile speed camera. He was doing a whopping 190km/h on the A20 motorway near Bessines.

Get Sozzled in Sauviat

Sauviat sur Vige’s 24th wine festival will be held on the 7th and 8th of June this year. Around 30 vineyards are to be represented as well as various other artisan stalls. The event will be held in the streets around the Place de l’Eglise. Over the 2 day event there will be entertainment as well as exhibitions of classic cars and agricultural machinery

Wind Turbines

The planned wind farm at Salles-de- Villefagnan in the north Charente has taken a major step closer to completion. Last week the first of the giant blades for the nine turbines began arriving at the site, a process that should be complete by the middle of next week. If all goes to plan, a giant crane will start lifting the 80m high turbines into position, spaced out every 300m for three kilometres. ‘The first EDF tests will take place in July and we estimate that it will enter into service in August,’ says Cyril Darnis, project manager for wind farm entrepreneurs ABO-Wind, a German firm that’s been working in France since 2002. The local mayor Gérard Sorton is delighted at the level of progress made and at the thought of having the wind farm up and running this summer. A keen environmentalist, he says that the electricity provided by the site will reduce the area’s dependence on nuclear energy. ‘In 20 years we’ll be able to take them down if we need to in just 15 days and put them up again in the same timescale – it takes centuries with nuclear power,’ he says. The wind farm, which cost €24million to build and which will have paid for itself in around eight to ten years, will also provide a tangible bonus for the local commune. The various landowners where the turbines sit will each receive €4,000 a year per turbine. And the annual professional tax from the energy farm will bring in €180,000 – doubling the council’s budget. ‘We’ll be able to repair the commune’s 40km of rural lanes, build the social and cultural centre, renovate old buildings, all without raising the local taxes for several years,’ says the mayor

Misleading ticket sales

EU tells airlines 'act now or we will' Buying a plane ticket online is still fraught with risk - a third of consumers are "ripped off or misled and confused", says EU report. Half of the websites identified as misleading consumers or using unfair practices have been forced to clean up their act, the EU has announced. Of the 386 sites surveyed (in 13 EU countries and Norway), 137 were penalised – but only half of these have made any improvements. A report just out shows that consumers buying air tickets on line still face 'serious and persistent problems'.

The airline ticket findings came to light as part of an EU airline sweep, a systematic check carried out in different EU countries simultaneously to investigate breaches in consumer law.

The sweep uncovered problems with ticket sales throughout the airline industry, explained consumer commissioner Meglena Kuneva, "I hope operators have now realised the determination of the commission to act on behalf of consumers where necessary" adding that if the airlines in question don't improve their sales and marketing practices by May 1, 2009, the commission "will have no choice but to intervene".

The investigation focussed on unfair contract terms, including, for example, sites which pre-select the more expensive options for you. The key findings are:

• one third of sites required action to punish breaches of consumer law

• many sites had multiple problems - misleading pricing, irregular contract terms and advertised offers which were unavailable

• problems occur across the board, from airlines through to tour operators

• enforcement/correction rates differ for national and cross-border infringements. While 55% of national sites were corrected, only 9% of cross-border cases improved (where the complaint relates to a company operating from another country)

• a lack of transparency, since most EU countries are unable to publish lists of offenders while cases are still in court.Some national surveys of airline booking sites have been published, however.

The EU wants to see the first price advertised being the final price paid, any limitations on special offers being clearly flagged, and fair contracts available in the consumer's native language.

Enforcement work will be stepped up, and the EU will monitor developments between now and May 2009 before deciding where it needs to intervene.