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What was happening in France 10, 50 and 100 years ago in December
A look back at events from the final month of the year 1924, 1974 and 2014
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Discover French magical Christmas châteaux in the Loire valley
Chateaux in the Pays de la Loire work together to provide festive cheer and local towns join in the festive fun
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Few French newspapers were founded before 1945
Many newspapers were deemed to have collaborated during World War Two
What is involved in the ‘plan Novi’ and is it new?
I recently heard mention in the French news of a ‘plan novi’ – is this new and what is it? F. G.
The plan Novi is an emergency plan aimed at rescuing a large number of victims in one location. It stands for no(nombreuses) vi(victimes).
It is set off by the prefect if necessary and consists of setting up a crisis group at the prefecture, putting the hospitals on alert, putting in place an operational command centre on the ground, mobilising air and land rescue vehicles and setting up a field hospital at the site.
The teams should be ready to help victims whether their cases are very urgent, such as needing flying to hospital, relatively urgent (needing an ambulance), mildly injured, or unhurt but shocked and in need of psychological support.
The plan Novi was first put in place in 2014 in connection with a mass food-poisoning incident.