2018_collapse_of_the_rue_d'aubagne
2018 Marseille building collapse
2018 French disaster
At 9 am on November 5, 2018, two buildings in Marseille, numbers 63 and 65 Rue d'Aubagne, collapsed in the center of Marseille,[1][2] killing eight people in the crowded neighborhood of Noailles. Number 63 was unoccupied, belonging since 2016 to the economic improvement company Marseille Habitat, but number 65 was occupied with people living in the building. Eight bodies were found in the rubble,[3][4][5] when the search for survivors came to an end on 9 November. Emergency services immediately demolished the building next to number 67, as it was unoccupied and equally fragile.
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The local government, overwhelmed by the management of this drama, evacuated at least 4,500 Marseille locals from 578 dangerous buildings during the months following the accident, but many are[when?] still lodged in their "temporary" housing. Most of the evacuees were from the ethnic minorities living in these buildings, and were moved from their houses to safer accommodation.[6] The management crisis became the norm: one year after the accident, the "Haute Comité au logement" spoke of a humanitarian crisis. Three years after the accident, 1,500 people still live in their temporary lodging.[citation needed]
After the collapse, the tenants of the houses in the center of Marseille cited laziness on the part of the town hall because most buildings in the center of Marseille are dilapidated and not maintained.[7]
During a march to honour the victims on 10 November, which gathered 8,000 people, according to the authorities, a balcony collapsed, injuring three.[8]
The indictments began in November 2020 with those of Marseille Habitat (owner of No. 63), Julien Ruas (close to Jean-Claude Gaudin and his deputy in charge of the risk management and prevention department), and the Liautard firm (co-ownership manager in charge of No. 65). The investigation could last for many years.[9]