Almost two years after the huge fire at its factory in Rouen (Seine-Maritime), the Lubrizol company was again indicted on Tuesday for environmental damage.

"The Lubrizol company was indicted on September 14 on charges of dumping harmful substances into water and discharging substances harmful to fish into fresh water," confirmed a judicial source after the revelations of

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Satisfied associations

"The file is very solid concerning these two new facts, it is based on numerous samples and analyzes in the dock, with enough elements to speak of acute toxicity, it affects fish but it is also risky for humans" , said Simon de Carvalho, who chairs the Association of victims of Lubrizol (ASL), civil party.

"It's a satisfaction, our associations never stop trying to prove that there is pollution," says Christophe Holleville, secretary of the Union of victims of Lubrizol.

The Lubrizol company and its lawyer have not yet reacted.

A first indictment in 2020

The company had been indicted for the first time on February 24, 2020, already for "spillage of harmful substances" but also for "non-compliant operation of a classified installation" having caused environmental damage.

The company was criticized "for not having taken all measures to prevent the significant spread of the fire and the resulting environmental damage," said a source familiar with the matter.

Placed under judicial supervision, the group had to pay a bond of 375,000 euros and constitute a "security" of 4 million euros, aimed at repairing "human and environmental damage" possibly attributable to the fire.

Nearly 10,000 tonnes of chemicals destroyed

In this huge fire in Rouen, which occurred on September 26, 2019 on an automotive lubricants site classified as Seveso high threshold, nearly 10,000 tons of chemicals had burned, while a huge cloud of black smoke 22 km long had form.

The fire caused no casualties.

The Normandie Logistique company, whose warehouses adjoining the Lubrizol factory had also been destroyed by the incident, had for its part been placed under the intermediary status of assisted witness.

Lubrizol has been under the control of American billionaire Warren Buffett since 2011, via his holding company Berkshire Hathaway, which bought the group for $ 9.7 billion.

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