A ceremony in memory of the victims of the AZF explosion in Toulouse
A ceremony in memory of the victims of the explosion of the AZF factory is organized Wednesday, September 21 in Toulouse, 21 years after the explosion.
A commemoration not to forget. A ceremony in memory of the victims of the explosion of the AZF factory is organized on Wednesday September 21 in Toulouse, 21 years after the explosion. It must take place at the AZF memorial, on the former site of the factory, where the Oncopole is now located.
The ceremony begins at 10:17 am, the time of the accident, with the maintenance of a siren. Then the names of the 31 victims of the factory explosion will be read.
At 10:25 a.m., there will be a wreath laying by representatives of the families and victims of AZF and several political figures. Will be present the mayor of Toulouse Jean-Luc Moudenc (LR), the president of the departmental council of Haute-Garonne Georges Méric (PS), the president of the regional council Carole Delga (PS) and the prefect of Occitanie Etienne Guyot. Finally, a minute of silence will be held at 10:35 a.m. in memory of the victims.
Friday, September 21, 2001, 10:17 a.m., AZF explodes in Toulouse
This Friday, September 21, 2001, it is 10:17 a.m. when the the explosion of a stock of 200 tons of ammonium nitrate at the AZF fertilizer plant in the southwest of Toulouse. A crater six meters deep was dug by the detonation heard 80 kilometers away.
The industrial accident causes the death of 31 people, including 21 who worked on the site. It also caused 2,500 injuries and tens of thousands of victims due to material damage.
After a long investigation, the criminal liability of the factory manager Serge Bichelin was definitively recognized in 2017. Just like that of the company Grande Paroisse, a subsidiary of Total, owner of the factory. The former leader received a 15-year suspended prison sentence. And the company is sentenced to a fine of 225,000 euros.
Several theories have been put forward to explain the explosion. In particular those of an attack, ten days after September 11, that of a malicious act, or even an accident on the EDF network. They are successful as plotters.