Pas-de-Calais has experienced several floods in just a few months, causing significant damage.
Some houses are no longer habitable and must be destroyed.
This is the case in Arques, near Saint-Omer, where 32 houses will be razed.
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Floods: Pas-de-Calais still under water, a never-ending nightmare
More than a meter of water had invaded the houses in the town center of Arques. Located downstream of the Aa River, this small town in Pas-de-Calais was flooded twice this winter in just three months. The government had declared a state of natural disaster.
Surprised by the torrential rains, the population did not have time to install sandbags in front of the doors or raise the furniture. Several dozen residents had to be evacuated and relocated. They hoped to find their home, but this will not be the case for everyone. In rue Henri-Puype, one of the most affected, 32 houses will be razed, announced Monday April 29 Benoît Roussel, the mayor (PS) of the city. A music and dance school is also involved.
TF1 met Clément, whose house will be one of the first acquired by the State. For him, it’s a relief: “No one would have wanted to buy a house that was flooded three times. It will allow us to move forward a little. We will receive 200,000 euros”. The next step for his family: resettling in the region.
This State buyout system was mentioned in January by the Minister of Ecological Transition, Christophe Béchu.
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The State must therefore acquire these empty homes to destroy them thanks to the major natural risks prevention fund, also called the “Barnier fund”. Created in 1995 and endowed with 200 million per year, it allows “finance the purchase by local authorities of homes and business buildings which are seriously threatened by a major natural risk”. Owners will thus be able to receive, within the limit of 240,000 euros, the value of their house before the floods. But on one condition: that the floods caused damage exceeding 50% of this amount. At the moment, only six homes are eligible for the fund.
Retention basins created to prevent future floods
Concretely, the Pays de Saint-Omer agglomeration will advance the sums of money, which the State will then reimburse. The local authority is also committed to buying back houses that do not meet the very strict criteria of the Barnier fund. Rue Henri-Puype, which has become a ghost, will be declared unbuildable. The school will be rebuilt a little further away.
Some Arquois have been demanding these buyouts for many months, but others are not enthusiastic about the idea of moving for good. They had already started carrying out work, in the hope of resuming their lives as before the floods.
In a few years, rue Henri-Puype will become a retention basin to store rainwater. The goal: to prevent the rest of the city from being flooded again. Arques is also not the only municipality concerned. In Blendecques, around ten houses eligible for the Barnier fund will be demolished to make way, again, for a retention basin.
