By Nicolas Zaugra
Published on
May 9, 24 at 9:30
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Will the concert be canceled? This question was on everyone’s minds Wednesday evening in the Old Port of Marseille after the incredible arrival ceremony of the Olympic flame aboard the Belem. Soprano And Alonzo were to give a large free concert at 9 p.m. in front of at least 45,000 people.
But everything did not go as planned in the Old Port and its surroundings when it was necessary to evacuate spectators from the flame and at the same time welcome those coming for the concert. A lesson for the organizers of Paris 2024 who are preparing the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on the Seine in Paris on July 26, a real security and logistical headache.
Too many crowds, saturated entry and exit points, emergency evacuations of spectators, crowd movement, tensions and a delayed concert: this is what happened on Wednesday May 8 after the fever of the flame.
“Far too many people”
The organizers actually had to manage too many crowds at the end of the day. The mayor of Marseille Benoit Payan announces 230,000 people in the city, including at least 150,000 on the Old Port. When it was time to evacuate the spectators after the flame ceremony, the situation became tense.
Some found themselves blocked and almost crushed towards the stage as they tried to leave the premises while others wanted to stay waiting for the Sopranos concert.
Quickly, many people find themselves stuck by the size of the crowd at the various exits from the secure zone. “The bazaar in Marseille. The security services are overwhelmed, forced to prevent people from entering the Old Port for the Soprano concert. Way too many people! », noted a journalist from West France at a filter point.
After the show dedicated to the arrival of the flame aboard the Belem, the first difficulties in navigating appeared and some became annoyed, noted Marseille news. In the Canebière-Mucem direction, for example, it was about walking in step and not fearing the dense crowds.
Rue de la République, for its part, moved slowly and the crowd, in different directions, became difficult to channel around 7:40 p.m. The police, not without effort, worked to ensure calm reigned between annoyed pedestrians and motorists.
Access to the Old Port closed
Faced with an increasingly critical situation in the Old Port, “to alleviate the pressure on the public, the prefecture asked the organizer to encourage exits and suspend entries”, indicated yesterday evening the services of the state.
On the city side, we assure that we have respected the requests of the prefecture and stopped entry at full capacity, 150,000 visitors.
Accesses which were able to reopen later in order to bring out the mass of people from the Old Port. A thirty people had to be urgently evacuated, compressed against the barriers. There are no casualties. The security agents and volunteers on site also had to deal with a large number of lost children who had to be isolated and returned to their parents.
Crowd movement fortunately without gravity
Last difficulty for the police on site: a significant crowd movementFortunately Without gravity, took place in the Old Port. Around 9:30 p.m., several people were running, screaming. Crowd movements were noted and several people were shocked. The police had to call for calm.
On the side of the police headquarters, we recognize that “the crowds generated pressure, which finally returned to order”.
The concert took place and went well
After 45 minutes of delay, Alonzo then Soprano ignited the crowd until 11:30 p.m. after an hour of show. A fireworks display closed the evening in style. But the chain France 2 who broadcast the event live had to “furnish” while waiting for the concert.
(With Jérémy Attali)
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