The Marie-Louise Dissard-Françoise High School in Tournefeuille, near Toulouse, was evacuated and closed on November 5 after a fire broke out in the building. The fire started in the school administration offices and was extinguished by firefighters from the Haute-Garonne department at around 11:00 a.m.
„In the context of the national strike, the Marie-Louise Dissard-Françoise High School will remain closed all day on Thursday, November 5. A fire, which has now been brought under control, required the intervention of the regional fire and rescue services at the school,“ the Tournefeuille municipality said.
The Haute-Garonne prefecture said that around 30 masked individuals entered the educational establishment at approximately 8:00 a.m. According to information published by „La Dépêche du Midi,“ the group used pyrotechnic devices, and the ensuing fire affected the administrative section of the high school.
„At around 8:00 a.m. today, approximately 30 particularly aggressive, equipped and prepared individuals, whose profile is not known at this stage, attacked and entered the Françoise High School in Tournefeuille,“ the prefecture said in a statement quoted by the publication.
Police had been deployed near the school as early as 6:00 a.m. local time. Law enforcement officers secured the students and staff, dispersed the group and made arrests, „La Dépêche du Midi“ reported. During the firefighting operation, the firefighters were pelted with pyrotechnic devices, and according to the prefecture, there were also attempts to take their equipment.
Television channel TF1 reported that before the fire, several masked individuals had fired pyrotechnic devices at the school entrance and then entered the building. The broadcaster showed serious damage to part of the high school. This information was presented as coming from the report, while the official authorities have not announced a final version of the origin of the fire.
The incident occurred during the national strike and protests in France. In Tournefeuille and other cities, students and trade union organizations are calling for more teachers, improvements to school infrastructure and changes to the academic workload.
The Tournefeuille municipality advised residents to avoid the area while security and cleanup operations continued. At the time of publication, the authorities had not announced definitively how the high school’s operations would be restored or what subsequent steps would be taken in the investigation.
Sources: aa.com.tr, ladepeche.fr, tf1.fr