major fire at Aubert et Duval
The fire at Aubert et Duval
The fire brigade was on duty on Friday morning to put out a major fire at Aubert et Duval in Pamiers in Ariège. The fire broke out early in the morning at around 6:30 a.m. According to the prefecture, "the fire quickly spread throughout the building. The staff was evacuated immediately. No injuries were reported."

Aubert et Duval specializes in the industrial processing of iron. The Airbus supplier is the largest private employer in Ariège. According to the radio station France Blue an acid bath caught fire.

The prefecture wrote on Twitter: "Residents within 200 meters of the factory are asked to withdraw as a precaution. The rest of the population is asked not to move. The entrances to Pamiers are closed to traffic to allow the work of the Not to hinder emergency services. "

According to the Vice-President of the Regional Council of Occitania, there are "toxic risks".


Funding would be substantial, but the prefecture said that "no evacuation of the city is planned at this time," it said. According to data from France Blue "the students from the Notre-Dame school were locked in the heart of the city" and "a safety area of ​​800 meters has been set up around the factory".


A correspondent for the news agency AFP According to police officers with loudspeakers on the road and asked people to close the windows of their cars and apartments and not to go on the street because of the risk of poisoning.

A resident whose apartment is 200 meters from the factory reported AFP: "I saw from my window that the children who were playing in the playground were quickly brought back to class." An alarm was triggered in the city. Several local residents said they heard small explosions before seeing a grayish cloud hovering over the city.