They knew their block wouldn’t last long. “We disturb too much”, explained the union activists gathered in front of the oil depot of Vern-sur-Seiche (Ille-et-Vilaine) on Tuesday. This Wednesday morning, the police proceeded calmly to unblock the site operated by Total. The intervention took place around 5:45 a.m. and without incident. For a little over an hour, tankers can again access the oil site, which had been blocked since Monday, March 20 in the early morning by opponents of the pension reform.
The blocking of the Total platform generated the first situations of fuel shortage in Rennes and the surrounding area. Several service stations had to close because they could not be supplied. A gradual return to normal is expected in the coming days. On Tuesday, union activists from the CGT and Force Ouvrière had warned that they would “block elsewhere” if they were dislodged from the oil site.
Tuesday evening, between 1,200 people (according to the prefecture) and 4,000 people (according to the unions) marched peacefully during a torchlight march organized by Sud Solidaires. A few hundred demonstrators continued their wild wandering through the streets of Rennes, causing some damage. A vehicle in particular caught fire and around twenty fire starts were treated by the firefighters. Four people were arrested for arson and rebellion.