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The prefect of Haute-Vienne Maurice Barate told AFP that the roof of the Limoges town hall had collapsed onto lower floors except in the west wing with two-thirds of the exterior facade already destroyed in what he described as a deliberate act by hooligans during protests the previous evening. Firefighters battled the blaze through the night after masked individuals broke into the building around 6pm set a municipal police car alight and started fires inside that spread rapidly to the timber roof causing the iconic clock tower to fall. According to a Reuters assessment the damage spared only part of the structure in an ornate 19th-century neo-Renaissance building that had survived two world wars but now faces an uncertain future as officials evaluate whether it risks further collapse.
Residents who witnessed the event expressed profound shock with one telling the BBC that damaging heritage buildings because of anger with the government is selfish. Francoise Faurie who saw the fire consume the town hall said it broke my heart and added I saw Notre Dame all over again except this time it was our town. A retired nurse named Edith Lorcen told Reuters she was disgusted and hurting but stressed it does nothing to add hate on top of hate while another local resident described the scenes as very upsetting.
Interior Ministry figures show that around 550000 people participated in more than 100 marches across France on October 17 as demonstrations that began over conditions in public high schools expanded to include grievances about the rising cost of living inequality and erosion of public services. The unrest led to more than 1200 arrests nationwide with over 500 police officers injured in clashes that included looting of businesses in Limoges city centre after the main protest dispersed. A government statement distributed via multiple outlets indicated that some 2000 people had gathered in the eastern Casseaux district of Limoges including more than 500 seeking confrontation and that four officers sustained serious injuries with several police vehicles destroyed.
The town hall inaugurated in 1883 after construction began in 1879 was listed as a historic monument in 1975 and served as a showcase for Limoges renowned porcelain and enamel industries in a city of roughly 130000 inhabitants. According to local historical records the building drew inspiration from the Hotel de Ville in Paris and had functioned as a central civic landmark where residents held weddings and official events for more than 140 years. A Telegraph report noted that its survival through major conflicts made the arson attack during the latest round of protests all the more jarring for a community that viewed it as an enduring symbol of local identity.
Mayor Guillaume Guerin a member of the Republicans party told local media Ici Limoges that he wanted the same capacity to rebuild as was given to Notre-Dame de Paris and threatened to resign with his entire city council within 24 hours if the national government failed to commit to concrete restoration plans. The mayor described the town hall as the common house where the Republic is most tangibly present for citizens and condemned the violence as unacceptable in remarks carried by Euronews. In an interview with Le Figaro one resident named Martine said she had known the building her whole life including people who got married there and called it terrible that things have come to this over these demands.
No injuries were reported from the Limoges fire itself though the prefect confirmed that elected officials municipal police and employees were inside the structure when the attack began. An architect named Jean-Charles who married his wife in the town hall 11 years earlier to the day told Le Parisien he was there in tears on the night of the blaze. Officials have yet to provide a full estimate of repair costs or a timeline for any potential reconstruction as investigations into the arson continue alongside assessments of structural integrity.
