Arson Attack on Lessay Abbey
Lessay Abbey was hit by an arson attack on 2 January, according to the mayor, Stéphanie Maubé, in a statement seen by BFM Normandie. Two fires broke out in the manger, which was made of wood, straw and a sheet of tarpaulin. The fire was quickly brought under control thanks to the intervention of a parishioner who entered the abbey ‘as the sheets were melting, causing thick smoke, and the straw was catching fire very quickly.
The parishioner filled buckets with water to extinguish the flames before they reached the Christmas tree next door and the wooden chairs.
‘The Town Hall is terribly shocked by this attack on a religious symbol and offers its friendly support to all the parishioners and to the parish priest, Father Louis, who arrived a few minutes after the fire broke out’, says Stéphanie Maubé.
To avoid any further incidents, the mayor has announced that ‘parishioners will be doing more rounds and being more present in the abbey church’. The automatic locking system for the doors in the evening will be reviewed and ‘mobile and rotating video surveillance could be envisaged’.
Source: BFMTV
Image: Google Street View