After the bad weather, life is organized in the Roya valley, hard hit by storm Alex.
To deliver food, drinking water and equipment to the most affected villages, the train is preferred, because roads and bridges are partly destroyed.
The rail also makes it possible to evacuate inhabitants.
REPORTAGE
From Thursday morning, TER trains will run again between Breil-sur-Roya, its current terminus, and Fontan.
While the two villages were bruised by the passage of storm Alex, the region will regain part of its rail link, after five days of repairs.
"These are the same trains as usual to which we can add at certain times an additional mixed train, from Nice, to transport up to twelve tons of food", explained to
Nice-Matin
Philippe Tabarot, vice-president of the Region South in charge of Transport.
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The railway is the only way to get to Fontan
The first transport of food and water via these same TER from Nice has already been carried out to Breil-sur-Roya, and tests were carried out as far as Fontan on Wednesday.
Because unlike roads and bridges, rails have (in part) survived bad weather.
Now, the railway is the only way to connect the two villages.
"I think there would have been the possibility of going there with a chopper, but since they are busy on other missions, the train was the solution", explains Philippe, who works for the psychological unit of Fontan and who would never have been able to reach the town without the train.
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At the heart of the return of the railway: the railway workers.
"In addition to our job, we feel proud to have done the work we have done to be able to give a hand, a boost to the population," explains one of them, Marc.
This person in charge of one of the trains which goes to Fontan is moved to see the line running again.
His team first repaired the rails and signaling, before organizing convoys.
"
We feel proud to have done the work we have done to be able to give a helping hand, a boost to the population
"
Heard on europe1:
Heard on europe1:
On the way out, his train brings medicine and heavy equipment to the village.
On his return, he brings back as many people as possible: firefighters, gendarmes, but also survivors.
"We saw elderly people who were in nursing homes, we brought down entire families with children," says the railway worker.
"We cannot leave people in need. They are landlocked. We cannot do otherwise."