Odile Grandamy returned to 6 rue de Trévise, six years after the explosion

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Pierre and Odile Grandamy lived a quiet life. “We went for walks twice a day, we went to the bistro, it was a life of retirees,” recalls the latter. Then, one morning January 2019their world was blown away by the explosion. Time has stopped for them. While everything around was speeding up. They then had to resume the course of their lives, knowing that it had been forever crippled. Pierre's state of healthsuffering from Lewy body dementia, then worsened considerably. And, less than two months after the tragedy, this former foreign executive of a major French bank also disappeared. 6 years ago, Pierre and Odile Grandamy lived a quiet life on the 5th floor of the 6 rue de Trévisewhen their building located in the heart of Paris (9th) was hit by a terrible explosion, causing four dead and dozens injured. Almost six long years after this morning of horror, Odile Grandamy was the first resident of 6 rue Trévise to move into her almost identically renovated apartment, on Tuesday November 5, 2024.

Lives that change in an instant

On January 12, 2019, Odile Grandamy had just had breakfast when the firefighters rang her doorbell. It is approximately 9 a.m. and one gas leak was reported to emergency services around ten minutes earlier. Her palm rests on the handle, then the little woman opens the door. Almost simultaneously, a “loud noise” was heard. THE French windows of his home are shattered and injure Pierre's legs. The staircase connecting the ground floor to the first floor was reduced to dust. Four people, including two firefighters, lost their lives due to the explosion.

Odile's gaze froze. “I remember having a shock seeing the gutted elevatorshe remembers. We were then evacuated. We descended among the rubble. My husband was paralyzed, he couldn't get down, we had to help him. Then we waited on the first floor, in a landlady's room. I remember having afraid it will collapse. We finally got out via the fire ladder. And we found ourselves outside, in dressing gowns and pajamas, without papers, without money, without anything. »

Pierre is taken to the Lariboisière hospital (10th) and a veil comes to disturb Odile's life: “The year [qui a suivi l’explosion] I lived on another planet. I didn't know if I was hungry anymore, my memories are blurry. Time stopped that day, at 9 a.m. »

Considerable immaterial damage

Yet another countdown is already ticking. “My husband was hospitalized, then we went to the South for the last few days. He didn't want to sit down anymore, he was afraid of heights,” says Odile from the sofa in her apartment. According to her, the impact of the explosion on her husband went well beyond what the experts wanted to say at the time.

The octogenarian continues: “It will be the great forgotten of this explosion. Without her, he could have lived for a few more years. » The man died less than two months after the events. Between the memories of Pierre, the administrative procedures, those with the lawyers, Odile Grandamy forgets herself. “I no longer thought about myself,” she concedes.

And time stretches again. “Two years after the explosion, I was convinced that I would soon be able to find my apartment, but then I ended up no longer giving it any importance. The work could have been much faster, but the City has increased its expertise in order to prove that she was not at fault. Anne Hidalgo (the mayor of Paris) did not want to admit it. »

Get back on track with your life

At the beginning of November 2024, Odile Grandamy was finally able to return to her accommodation at 6 rue de Trévise. “My daughter told me: this evening, we’re sleeping there. We ate a sandwich outside and then that's what we did. I was stressed, I saw the images of my husband again paralyzed…” she rewinds. It was Tuesday November 5, 2024.

The day after, a couple is also back in the building which smells of fresh paint and where workers are still doing work. Odile Grandamy smiles. “In the past, neighbors would say hello to each other, without really knowing each other. But since the 12th, we have become close, we have created a special bond. And that evening we had champagne together.”

Another day passes and time begins to take its toll. “The first three nights were difficult,” confides Odile. I think about it all the time [à l’explosion]. But a few days ago, I said to myself: now I feel good at home. » She then opens a window in her living room, from which we can see part of the Sacred Heart, and says: “We no longer did Christmas, but this year we are all going to do it here. »

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