He will be still prohibited this weekend to buy fuel in a can or in a jerry can, in the North as in Pas-de-Calais. There will also be until Monday priority access to emergency vehicles at select gas stations.
The professions concerned are those of firefighters, paramedics, the police and the gendarmerie, but also transporters of blood and organ collections and distributors of pharmaceutical or health products. Access is also reserved for health professionals with a professional card or a certificate from their employer.
You can find the list of service stations with a priority access queue on the site of the Hauts-de-France prefecture
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Emergency measures justified by the fuel crisis situation of recent days. This Friday afternoon, Minister for Energy Transition Agnès Panier-Runacher was in Arras, to organize the gasoline distributions this weekend. She acknowledged after a meeting with prefects that tensions were “significant” in Pas-de-Calais and the North, but assured that the situation was improving.
Between 42 and 43% of service stations in difficulty in the region
While 19% of service stations “encounter difficulties” in France, the figures have doubled in the region. In Pas-de-Calais, 52% of service stations were out of fuel on Thursday, they are 42% this Friday. In the North, they were 47% to have supply difficulties on Thursday and they are still 43% this Friday.
A situation due the national strike movement at Total Energie, which notably affects the Mardyck depot, near Dunkirk. The Hauts-de-France prefecture ensures that discussions are underway with the oil company and hopes for an agreement between employees and management as soon as possible.
On his side, President Emmanuel Macron reacted from Prague to call on motorists not to panic. “I really want to have a call for calm here. I also call each and everyone to responsibility. All wage claims are legitimate, but they must not prevent each other from living and being able to circulate.“