weakened after the passage of Céline, Cap Ferret is on alert

2023-11-01 20:03:20

Located between the Atlantic Ocean and the Arcachon basin, the tip of Cap Ferret has suffered harsh attacks. Their traces were still clearly visible on November 1st. Encouraged by the strong tidal coefficients, the violent swell, generated by storm Céline on October 28 and 29, was destructive. And the weather forecasts are not reassuring for the coming days. The queue of the tempête Ciaran should affect this territory, a tourist and natural jewel of Gironde.

Located between the Atlantic Ocean and the Arcachon basin, the tip of Cap Ferret has suffered harsh attacks. Their traces were still clearly visible on November 1st. Encouraged by the strong tidal coefficients, the violent swell, generated by storm Céline on October 28 and 29, was destructive. And the weather forecasts are not reassuring for the coming days. The queue of the tempête Ciaran should affect this territory, a tourist and natural jewel of Gironde.

“The surge of large and powerful waves associated with relatively high sea levels risks causing submersion in low or exposed areas of the Gironde coastline during high seas hours,” indicated the Gironde prefecture on November 1. And another storm is also feared on Friday November 3 and Saturday November 4. Weakened, will Cap Ferret hold up in the face of the natural elements that continue to be unleashed on its coasts?

Benoît Bartherotte shows the “bullnose” of his sea wall attacked by the waves of storm Céline.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

“The dike held”

An area extremely exposed to the onslaught of the ocean, the tip of the tip of Cap Ferret seems to defy the laws of nature. It was fortified by means of a dike built by the owner of the place, Benoit Bartherotte. After the passage of storm Céline, “the dike held. We caught a lot of waves but it went well! » he rejoices, not failing to remind us that his work, built at great expense“breaks the waves” and “protects 400 properties”.

This year, 340,000 euros were spent to consolidate the work. Funds provided half by patrons, the rest coming from the pocket of Benoît Bartherotte. Today, its dike is 200 meters long. To achieve such a result, it was necessary to constantly dump concrete blocks, mainly from demolition site waste. However, Benoit Bartherotte’s fear is to run out of this waste in the event of an imminent need to reinforce the dike. Because the building has a weak point: its pier head, the tip of the tip. Storm Céline managed to move blocks weighing several tons there…

At the forefront, requested by the owners, machines consolidate the surroundings of their homes.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

Consolidate urgently

Further down, inside the Basin, cranes are busy moving enormous rocks transported by trucks. From her house located 30 meters from the water, Diane Vidalies observes the work of her workers. A small part of its dike was washed away by Céline. The path overlooking the water, usually used by onlookers, is broken. It is necessary to consolidate urgently, including on a public holiday. “We might see that there was a weak area, the sea dug the dike a little,” relates the co-owner of this corner of paradise since 1988. As it is going to hit hard this week, we added a line of blocks on the land which, with the waves, will end up in the water. » Work on the dike is incessant. “That’s the rule when we live there,” she said simply.

Diane Vidalies has the dike that protects her house consolidated.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

His neighbors and family benefit from temporary occupation authorization. As such, all this work is their responsibility. “The cranes operating in this location are the work of private owners,” recalls the mayor of Lège-Cap-Ferret, Philippe de Gonneville. What the owners themselves readily emphasize: “We call each other between neighbors and we act on good terms,” explains Diane Vidalies. Monday, the mayor and the sub-prefect came, we had the green light to act. »

Pier torn off

In the village of l’Herbe, the wooden staircase was dismantled by the swell.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

Further north, in the traders’ alley, not far from the lighthouse, the passage of the latest storms left its mark. “ Boats ran aground everywhere, comments Valentin, waiter at the Vintage bar which has a sheltered terrace. This is not common. What raises questions is the repetition of storms. Tomorrow (November 2, Editor’s note), I’m hesitant to open the establishment, it’s dangerous for customers, a chair or anything else might fly away…” Not far away, still at the edge of the pool, Céline’s passage was so violent that part of the Cap Ferret pier, which welcomes the shuttle coming from Arcachon, was torn away by the swell.

In Claouey, the pontoons were submerged and destroyed by storm Céline.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

Sand dikes

A little further down, in the village of l’Herbe and, as surprising as it may seem, the oyster huts were not too affected. What clashes with the vision of the port of Claouey, another village in Cap Ferret. The town hall has issued an order prohibiting public access to this area. And a few paltry mounds of sand were hastily erected to protect homes from rising waters. There, the wooden pontoons were submerged and destroyed. And the company’s employees Mairé Marine are busy removing boats from the waters of the basin by the dozen in order to put them sheltered.

Almost everywhere in the villages of Cap Ferret, sand dams have been erected.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

The inhabitants of the Ferret peninsula, from Claouey to the tip, are repairing the damage caused last weekend and preparing to face storm Ciaran.

Fabien Cottereau/ “SOUTH WEST”

Noting the damage, local resident Jean-Yves Geraud wonders: “I have never seen that. Not even during the storms of 1999 and 2010. I’ve been coming here since I was born. The swell was enormous, the boats hit the pontoons. And this happened several times during the week. We worry that this is only the beginning, that these types of storms often come one following the other…”

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