lifting of the Flaubert bridge on the night of Friday to Saturday for the departure of the sailboat Le Français
The sailboat Le Français will leave the quays of Rouen and will pass under the Flaubert bridge during the night of Friday February 4 to Saturday February 5, 2022. While waiting for her return for the 2023 Armada, it will still be possible to visit her on Saturday in Caudebec-en- Caux, near Le Havre.
After five weeks moored on the quays of Rouen, it is time for “Le Français” to leave. And to reach the sea, the Flaubert bridge will rise during the night of Friday February 4 to Saturday February 5, 2022. The crossing will take place around 4:30 a.m. It will be necessary to be very early for the observer.
Traffic on the bridge will therefore be cut off. Here are the timetable details:
- 2 a.m.: beginning of closure of the A150 motorway then RN1338, effective closure of the two axes for 3:15 a.m.
- 3:30 a.m. – 4:15 a.m.: Arrival of the Eiffage and Clemessy teams then inspection on the apron
- 4:15 a.m. – 4:30 a.m.: Deck lifting maneuver
- 04h30 – 05h30: Passage of the boat
- 5:30 a.m. – 5:45 a.m.: Descent from the decks of the Flaubert bridge
- 05h45 – 06h30: reopening of the A150 and RN1338 motorways.
In 2019, the Flaubert bridge had risen several times to let ships pass during the Armada.
At 6:30 a.m., two classes of CM2 students will board the ship for the trip up the Seine to Caudebec-en-Caux. These are the students ofhe Jacques-Prévert and La Caillouville schools in Rives-en-Seine. Arrived at destination, it will be possible to visit the ship one last time from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. (vaccination pass compulsory).
The Frenchman will then head to Lorient to undergo some repairs and get a makeover. “Pendant three months the three lower masts will be changed. The ship is starting to get old!”explains Mathieu Klitting, director of the polar school. The Frenchman’s next stopover is scheduled for May in La Rochelle. The ship should be present for Armada 2023.
baptized “witness of the poles”, this magnificent school ship built in the middle of the century has a mission with the public: to be the spokesperson for the poles in danger due to global warming. On board, a polar school whose mission is to raise awareness of climate issues.
During these five weeks in Rouen, Le Français welcomed 1,033 pupils on board, aged 8 to 18, to raise their awareness of the environment. 47% of them come from a priority education network. “Many had never set foot on a boat”, is surprised Mathieu Klitting. Students participated in workshops. “The aim was in particular to explain to them how a pole is a climate regulator.”
The next Rouen Armada will take place from June 8 to 18, 2023. The Frenchman should be there. To wait, another ship should drop anchor in Rouen in June 2022.
The maritime event which brings together the most beautiful sailboats in the world is already being prepared and the organizers want for this future edition to go beyond the festive side of this meeting. For this future edition in 2023, the Rouen Armada will take a new turn with a desire to raise awareness of global warming and the protection of the oceans.
On June 8, one year before the Armada, a symposium on the protection of oceans, water and rivers will be organized in partnership with the Métropole Rouen Normandie.