a first individual compensated following the fire

This is a first in the case of compensation for victims of the fire in Lubrizol. The company compensated a retiree. The man must have thrown away his harvest of vegetables which served as a supplement for his retirement. An example that an association of victims would like to see develop.

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On September 26, 2019, the warehouses of the Lubrizol factory burned down in Rouen. 33 kilometers north-east of there, in Sigy en Bray, Jacques Ribel, a retired farmer, sees the black cloud of the fire pass above his head. Like many residents, between Seine-Maritime and Belgium located on a long corridor 22 kilometers long and six wide, Jacques will learn that the lands of his vegetable garden are polluted by the fallout of soot.

Reluctantly, the septuagenarian must resolve to throw away the vegetables he grows in his vegetable garden. The very ones he used to sell once a week on the market and which allowed him to improve his small pension of 900 euros per month. In addition, he will also have to separate himself from the tarpaulins of his greenhouses soiled by soot from the fire. They must be replaced.

That’s a lot for this man who doesn’t ride gold. During the rapidly coming winter, Jacques no longer had the financial means to heat himself. The damage is not only financial. It is also moral. At this time, Jacques Ribel explains having tried to end his life.

Help and advice from an association

Distraught, Jacques finds help from the‘Union of Victims of Lubrizol. On the advice of the association, he sent a letter to Isabelle Striga, CEO of Lubrizol France. We are on November 11th. More than a year after the incident.

In this letter, Jacques recounts his setbacks and difficulties, his distress and his financial loss which he estimates at approximately 2,500 euros. He must also replace the tarpaulins in his vegetable garden.

Lubrizol affected by the situation?

Would the letter have touched the French head of the American company to the heart? At the very least, the latter seems to have been sensitive to reading this case. The company agrees to make a gesture towards Jacques Ribel and contacts him:

“We cannot give you money. On the other hand, we can compensate you otherwise”

Jacques Ribel, retired, reporting Lubrizol’s comments

Jacques Ribel, who is not a man of money, is satisfied with this proposal. The chemical company, via Exetech the company appointed to manage the compensation, decides to pay him 600 euros of wood steres and 400 € of tarpaulins to Jacques.

According to Mr. Delmas, representative of Exetech, no compensation has been requested from Mr. Ribel. “He also did not have to give up his rights to justice and did not have to provide evidence of his prejudice.”

A payment in kind which today questions the‘Union of Victims of Lubrizol.

Good for you, Mr. Ribel. But how can we reimburse tarpaulins to a private individual and refuse to do so to people whose job it is?

Christophe Holleville, secretary of the Union of Victims of Lubrizol

All the victims already compensated?

This compensation hides another reality according to Christophe Holleville, of the Union of Victims of Lubrizol. The lawyers of the association intend to put forward “the Ribel case” to unblock other situations: those concerning injured professionals and to whom payments have been refused. But there, each of these cases blithely exceeds 1000 euros.

Because, according to Christophe Holleville and contrary to what Exatech announces, the number of victims is not limited to a thousand and the number of cases to be processed is higher than ten.

There are 3,400 farms affected by the soot rains.

Christophe Holleville, secretary of the Union of Victims of Lubrizol