Heatwave: River people find refuge at Carmignan beach in Bagnols-sur-Cèze

Le premier adjoint est venu à la rencontre des baigneurs.

Les baigneurs de la plage de Carmignan arrivent en familles de Bagnols-sur-Cèze et de ses environs ainsi que de Pont-Saint-Esprit, pour profiter de la fraîcheur et de tranquillité de ce lieu bercé par les bruits de la rivière.

How about an aperitif on the Cèze with your feet in the water ? It's hard to resist in these hot weathers. It's 4pm this Friday, August 2, 2024. It's hot. The bathers at Carmignan beach arrive with their families from Bagnols-sur-Cèze and its surroundings. Antoine, a building craftsman, left Pont-Saint-Esprit with his wife and children. “The water is cleaner here” explains his wife. Antoine can't stand the heatwave anymore. “This heat is too much! We barely got out of the water and we were already dry.” He took refuge under his big parasol.

Cicada songs

“It's even better in the evening”says this young woman. “We see the dads and moms arriving with their offspring to eat by the water while listening to the song of the cicadas and the sounds of the Cèze. In the large family of the people of the river, There is also this young father. “My job he says, is sound engineer”. But he is also attached to issues related to the preservation of the environment. He is especially a regular at the Carmignan beach, which he helps to maintain, sometimes by crowing.

Indelicate users

The sound engineer is angry with some users who leave their rubbish on the beach. He wants to lead by example. He brought his own rubbish bag to take away his rubbish. “I also pick up people's dirt” he says, while specifying that Esat Véronique also participates in maintaining the beach.

A UV-protective canvas

This Friday, August 2, he planted his UV-protective canvas on one of the banks of the Cèze.. “It burns a bit of money but it still protects against ultraviolet rays! We take better advantage of the shade." Under his canvas tent, he has stored his cart, the cooler, the canvas and a small speaker.

Good-natured atmosphere

The program is the same for everyone: swimming, relaxing and sunbathing in the shade. The atmosphere is good-natured. A mother asks a journalist to take a picture of her two boys sitting in their buoy. On the health side, the Regional Health Agency regularly checks the quality of the water, from Hamelines to Carmignan, via the campsites Les Genêts d'Or and La Coquille.

“The prettiest corner of freshness”

The Natura 2000 classified site is bordered by a forest of poplars, ash trees, alders, willows and other elms. A light breeze whips the radiant faces of the bathers and diffuses a pleasant freshness appreciated by all. It is an understatement to say that in Carmignan, the people of the river have found their camping paradise at the foot of the Carmignan bridge. “It is one of the most beautiful cool spots you can have in the city”, declares Maxime Couston, first deputy mayor of Bagnols-sur-Cèze responsible for the living environment.

Unsupervised swimming

The elected official nevertheless warns users. Swimming is not supervised at Carmignan beach. Families are asked to keep an eye on their children. Also, be careful with cars coming and going on the footbridge, as it has only one lane while traffic flows in both directions.