The carnival world is in mourning after the death this Sunday March 20 morning of at least 6 revelers in Strépy-Bracquegnies in Belgium20 kilometers from the French border. A car drove into a crowd of people in the middle of “collecting Gilles” and going at the carnival of La Louvière early this Sunday morning.
President of the Federation of Festivals, Carnivals and Celebrations of France, the northerner William Hautier, also a member of the Veint’ches de Ruminghem, wanted to react to this tragedy: “_It’s horrible, we know these revelers, we have links with them_, we think very strongly of the families, the loved ones who witnessed this. We think very strongly of our Belgian friends and we are in solidarity.“
– JULIAN WARNAND
A tragedy that occurred before the festivities
“It happened during the collection of the Gilles, you should know that it is, it is a moment of intimacy, where we find ourselves with the family, with the wives and children, with our loved ones and members of our society, to dress up, gather together, and set out to carnival music. It’s a festive and friendly moment, a bit like the chapels at home.”
William Hautier welcomes the decision to stop the carnival: “We don’t have the head for that anymore, it’s horrible, _after two years of stopping because of the health crisis, while these festivities must be a breather, an escape, it’s horrible, that’s all I have to say_.“