PARIS—Unlike the current situation in Philadelphia and Boston in the United States, snow has finally started to melt in France. Yet in a country where 5 inches of snow in December is as unusual as 20 inches in New York’s Central Park, the end of the episode that massively disrupted road and plane traffic is not yet the end of the problem.
In Paris, for instance, the level of the Seine River is now high enough to prevent any car traffic on the “voie sur berges,” the fast lanes crossing the city center from west to east. On Tuesday, the Seine River reached its highest level of the year, causing Paris to issue a yellow warning, and all tourist boats, the so-called “bateaux-mouches,” were forbidden from being on the river.
In Charles de Gaulle Airport, people are no longer seen sleeping on the ground. Yet, nearly 25,000 pieces of luggage remain abandoned after the major flight mess during the Christmas holiday.
Nearly 2,000 people had to spend Christmas Eve within the walls of Charles de Gaulle Airport, due in part to the snow falling over Paris. This was not the only reason, however, and maybe not even the most important: most of the 670 flights canceled on Dec. 24 were not owing to the snow, but because of a shortage of glycol, the liquid used to melt ice on plane wings.
French Minister of Transportation Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet asked for a formal investigation over the glycol issue, “I want to know if we have been threatened by a real shortage or if we indeed have faced shortage.”
Indeed, Air France executives directly accused Aeroports de Paris, the company operating Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports, of mishandling the stocks and failing to announce difficulties in time. This would explain why thousands of passengers checked in, boarded their planes, and then had to go back to the terminals without any notice as to what would become of their luggage.
Air France finally announced that its teams have been reinforced and are working 24/7 to deliver the luggage to their owners: “Since Dec. 25, nearly 36,000 pieces of luggage have been given back to their owners. Currently, 10,000 pieces of luggage are being processed and should be delivered before the end of the week. The delivery of luggage in France is made by plane since Air France flights resumed to normal, and by truck.”
Air France announced that a compensation of 100 euros (US$130) would be offered to passengers who had to buy clothes because of the emergency. French law ensures a compensation of 10 times more, which could prompt many to ask for a more appropriate compensation … the least that could be done to compensate for a lost Christmas.
In Paris, for instance, the level of the Seine River is now high enough to prevent any car traffic on the “voie sur berges,” the fast lanes crossing the city center from west to east. On Tuesday, the Seine River reached its highest level of the year, causing Paris to issue a yellow warning, and all tourist boats, the so-called “bateaux-mouches,” were forbidden from being on the river.
In Charles de Gaulle Airport, people are no longer seen sleeping on the ground. Yet, nearly 25,000 pieces of luggage remain abandoned after the major flight mess during the Christmas holiday.
Nearly 2,000 people had to spend Christmas Eve within the walls of Charles de Gaulle Airport, due in part to the snow falling over Paris. This was not the only reason, however, and maybe not even the most important: most of the 670 flights canceled on Dec. 24 were not owing to the snow, but because of a shortage of glycol, the liquid used to melt ice on plane wings.
French Minister of Transportation Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet asked for a formal investigation over the glycol issue, “I want to know if we have been threatened by a real shortage or if we indeed have faced shortage.”
Indeed, Air France executives directly accused Aeroports de Paris, the company operating Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports, of mishandling the stocks and failing to announce difficulties in time. This would explain why thousands of passengers checked in, boarded their planes, and then had to go back to the terminals without any notice as to what would become of their luggage.
Air France finally announced that its teams have been reinforced and are working 24/7 to deliver the luggage to their owners: “Since Dec. 25, nearly 36,000 pieces of luggage have been given back to their owners. Currently, 10,000 pieces of luggage are being processed and should be delivered before the end of the week. The delivery of luggage in France is made by plane since Air France flights resumed to normal, and by truck.”
Air France announced that a compensation of 100 euros (US$130) would be offered to passengers who had to buy clothes because of the emergency. French law ensures a compensation of 10 times more, which could prompt many to ask for a more appropriate compensation … the least that could be done to compensate for a lost Christmas.
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