A fire broke out this Friday, December 13 around 9 p.m. on the production site of the Max Vauché chocolate factory in Controis-en-Sologne (Loir-et-Cher). Although no casualties have been reported, this is a hard blow for the company which lost a significant amount of stock in the run-up to the end-of-year holidays.
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The fire broke out around 9:15 p.m. in the main workshop of the Max Vauché chocolate factory in Controis-en-Sologne, in Loir-et-Cher. The building of approximately 800 m2 taken by the flames housed the company's tools and all the production for the end of year celebrations. A tragedy for Emmanuel Le Goff, the business manager, because “Christmas is 40% of our turnover“, he explains, helpless in front of his burning workshop.
Around fifty firefighters were mobilized on site. Despite a particularly violent fire, the firefighters were able to prevent the fire from reaching the workshop shop. “We made the choice to limit the spread and defend the entire sales area to protect it from fire.“, indicates Commander Damien Borde in charge of rescue operations.
It is a fire that is difficult to attack from the inside due to the risk of collapse.he specifies. The heat and flames remain concentrated in the building under the metal sheets.“If around 1 a.m. the fire had largely subsided, the extinguishing and cooling operations lasted all night on the chocolate factory site.
For the Max Vauché chocolate factory, the toll is heavy. A few days before the end-of-year holidays, the significant loss of stock and production tools represents a danger for the company taken over in 2022 by Emmanuel le Goff alongside Valérie Chiron.
The Controis-en-Sologne site employs 35 people, some of whom witnessed the fire in shock and are now unemployed. In addition to its store in Contres, the company has several sales sites in Blois, Orléans, Tours, and a small production workshop in Bracieux (Loir-et-Cher). Emmanuel Le Goff intends to do everything to save this important period for his company, but he recognizes it: “It will be difficult. Everything we had to put out for Christmas, the raw materials and the packaging were on this site!“The origin of the fire is currently unknown.
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