Chagny. Leak in the Canal du Centre: a crack is probably the cause

The mayor of Chagny, the sub-prefect, the prefect, and the territorial director of Voies Navigables de France visited the edge of the Canal du Centre channel this Tuesday morning, which is almost dry. A large crack is appearing on one of the walls. A design office will assess the situation next week, before essential work begins.

VNF Regional Director Olivier Fauriel identifies the probable — VNF Regional Director Olivier Fauriel examines the probable "crime scene." This crack (on the left side of the wall) could be the source of the leak. Photo by Geoffrey Fleury

On one side of the Canal du Centre, a structure built over 200 years ago, Yves Séguy, the prefect of Saône-et-Loire, and Olivier Fauriel, territorial director of Voies Navigables de France (VNF), are deep in conversation. Opposite them, the channel is almost dry. On one side of the canal, a staircase-shaped crack appears: "We are, I think, at the supposed 'crime scene.' And there is another, smaller crack, further away," Olivier Fauriel concedes.

Is it the cause of the flooding of several houses below the canal on the evening of Thursday, April 10 , on the Remigny road in Chagny? It's quite possible, but VNF wants to be certain.

Yves Séguy (left) with Olivier Fauriel, regional director of VNF. Photo Geoffrey Fleury

At the beginning of next week, a design office will conduct its initial investigations for two days, "but only once everything is empty and clean. We'll have to clean everything and remove the sediment to see if the problem is just the crack or something else," continues the territorial director. Then, work will have to begin and everything will have to dry and consolidate before navigation, which has been suspended between Saint-Léger-sur-Dheune and Chalon-sur-Saône, can resume. "In May, it will be impossible. We're hoping for the summer," says Olivier Fauriel.

This is the probable cause of the canal leak. Photo Geoffrey Fleury

He points out that the main concern is the safety of local residents. They were able to return home four days after the incident. "Given the presence of homes, the area is regularly monitored. We are surprised that all this happened because there was no alert, and it is rare for a leak to be recorded on our network. I think we were quite responsive."

For his part, Yves Séguy asserts that VNF will establish a reinforced vigilance system. He will also convene a meeting of the Departmental Council for the Environment and Health and Technological Risks, an administrative advisory committee, on this subject. "It will be dedicated to examining the situation of dams and dikes."