Nina Droff 06:15, May 31, 2022
After the incidents at the Stade de France on Saturday evening, on the sidelines of the Champions League final, the traders at the foot of the stadium point the finger at the organization around the stadium, with in their sights the "filtering dam" at the exit of the RER and the police force not important enough in their eyes.
REPORTAGE
A few meters from the entrances to the Stade de France, Hervé rearranges the chairs and tables in front of his establishment.
Most were knocked down by the crush on Saturday evening.
This is unheard of in 6 years, for this restaurateur.
"There are sometimes small fights, but it stops there", he explains.
"But it was the first time it was like that. I think it was because they had been blocked for a long time before they could access the stadium."
The "filtering dam" in question
Indeed, several restaurateurs evoke the "filtering dam" installed a few meters from the entrances and supposed to filter the supporters upstream.
According to them, it is this device which contributed to creating a "funnel effect", then crowd movements.
Sonia, manager of the Kick Off confirms: "It was the barrage that posed a problem. They dropped everyone suddenly. There were supporters with tickets who got stuck and arrived very angry. In addition, he could no longer drink alcohol so it was very tense.
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According to her, other supporters tried to force their way into her restaurant to watch the match.
The police had to intervene and close the establishment.
A device not important enough?
Cloth on the shoulder, Yacine, waiter in the close restaurant, estimates, him, that the device of police force was not important enough to contain the crowd.
"At noon, there were a lot of police, we felt safe. But they left when night came and that gave way to a lot of overflows," he sighs.
A disorganization that they hope not to experience again, for the next matches of the French team scheduled for June.