Written by Amandine Pointel et Luke Hobe
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In Orne, snow, ice and accidents paralyzed traffic for a large part of the evening on the A28 motorway, near Gacé, leaving many motorists stranded for more than ten hours on Thursday November 21, 2024.
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They didn't expect that. In Orne, many motorists were stranded on the evening of Thursday November 21, 2024.
Traffic was interrupted for several hours on the A28 motorway near Gacé, due to accidents in both directions of traffic, in the middle of the Caetano storm. One of our journalists was one of them, he collected some testimonies.
Vincent found himself stranded from 7 p.m. “I came from Rouen to return to Nantes, and this is the first time I have experienced such a situation. Fortunately, I had planned my ski coat this morning, it was a sign!”
The executive kept busy working on his laptop: “I'm keeping myself busy while working because I think that tomorrow morning I won't be in the best shape to be efficient at work! I'm getting a head start for tomorrow and next week.”
He puts things into perspective, despite the situation: “It's not the worst situation, we'll get over it this weekend.”
Nicolas, gas technician at GRDF, also shares his experience: “We weren't really warned of the conditions before we got on the highway. It was going slowly at first, but now it's completely at a standstill.” he told us in the evening.
He set up a makeshift space in his car, using sweaters as pillows. “I watch series to pass the time.”
For several hours, motorists and trucks remained stuck on the A28, in Orne, near Gacé.
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© Lucas Hobe / France Télévisions
English tourists stranded there confirm the lack of available information: “No one has come to us to tell us what is happening! Luckily we have food, water and warm clothes.”
Also read: Snow, accidents, ice. “Stay at home until Friday”: the appeal for caution from the sub-prefect of Manche
The adventurer Philippe Croizon was also a shipwreck on the A28 with his family and a two-year-old baby.
Traffic was finally unblocked around midnight, in both directions of traffic, allowing vehicles to slowly return to the road, at a speed of 10 km/h.
“The highway was still quite snowy overnight with a bit of ice due to the low temperatures. Most of the trucks had to stay on the side of the road. tells our journalist.
As a reminder, the five Normandy departments are still on alert for snow and ice this Friday, November 22. A prefectural decree prohibited all circulation of trucks weighing more than 7.5 tonnes “until further notice”.
Thursday, November 21, at 6 p.m., the Orne Prefecture recorded 107 person rescue interventions carried out by the SDIS, including 25 road accidents, not serious, linked to the current meteorological episode and 32 falls. trees.
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