injured by the explosion of an ethanol lamp in Cannes, Lorenzo testifies

A month after the explosion of an ethanol lamp at Caveau 30 in Cannes, where several customers were burned, one of the victims testifies for the first time. A complaint was filed against the town hall and the restaurant, which was forced to close for six months.

“I'm still shaken, I haven't recovered from the accident. I also underwent a lot of surgical interventions”, testifies for the first time at the microphone of BFM Nice Côte d'Azur Lorenzo, one of the victims of the explosion of an ethanol lamp during an evening with friends at Caveau 30, on November 27, in Cannes.

Almost a month after the incident, this Italian real estate agent is still in shock. Above all, he still bears the marks on his face and hands. He has undergone four skin grafts and months of convalescence await him.

A few rooms from here, his friend Maurélio has just come out of a coma. After being burned all over the upper part of her body, Giulia is, for her part, currently plunged into an artificial coma.

“It was very hard to learn what happened to him. Accidents like this in 2024 are unacceptable. His life may be ruined. Even today, I find it hard to bear, to accept it,” Massimo, Giulia’s father, tells BFM Nice Côte d’Azur.

“These lamps are dangerous”

After the accident, the use of the restaurant's ethanol lamps was singled out.

“What's shocking to me is that I heard that the waiter was pushed. It didn't happen like that. These lamps are dangerous and the waiter put ethanol back in front of us so that there was still a flame,” explains Lorenzo. And that's what caused his explosion. Indeed, a gel must normally be used to recharge ethanol lamps.

However, although it is forbidden to heat terraces, these lamps are legal. “It is perhaps a way of circumventing the law which effectively banned any heating device on terraces. But the main function of these lamps is to heat. Moreover, all the Italians who were present at the table on the evening of the accident, they were complaining about the heat given off by these lamps”, explains Maître Jérôme Zuccarelli, lawyer for the victims.

A complaint was filed against the restaurant and Cannes town hall. Pending the conclusions of the investigation, Cellar 30 was closed for six months by the prefecture.