The kids are having their New Year’s Eve party. Credit: Konk.org
The numbers are in:
During the New Year’s celebrations the number of burnt-out cars was slightly lower than a year ago. Across the country, 372 cars were set alight (397 last year), and the number of arrests remained stable: 259.
The winning town this year was Nantes (40 cars), followed by Strassbourg and Toulouse (20 each). Nice was quiet (14), but a serious contender for future championships is the tiny town of Châlette-sur-Loing, where 16 cars went up in flames – in just one night.
In the greater Paris area, the statistics are more detailed: of the 102 cars that got cremated, 42 were not directly ignited, but were the victim of ‘propagation’, which must be a relief for their owners.
Over the year, the number of carbecues across the country was just over 40,000. The daily average lies between 70 and 80 cars on weekdays, and twice that during weekends.
Interestingly, burnt cars are not always the victim of vandalism. In one of three cases it’s a matter of insurance fraud, in 10 to 15 percent they were stolen and incinerated to erase fingerprints.
