Fishermen in the South Brittany and Charente-Maritime departements of France have been staging blockades affecting all vessel movements in and out of various ports along the coast. The harbours of La Turballe, St Gilles Croix de Vie and Les Sables d’Olonne have all been affected.

PBO readers escaped from St Gilles Croix de Vie having been trapped by fishermen protesting against fuel prices and fish quotas. They used a cable across the harbour entrance to prevent any vessels, except fishing boats, from entering or leaving freely.

There are reports that Fishermen in Les Sables d’Olonne assaulted several Finnish yachtsmen after a group of Australian and New-Zealand yachtsmen broke through their barricade.

And last week, PBO editor, Sarah Norbury, aboard a yacht in south Brittany was warned of an impending blockade at La Turballe, south of the Vilaine River.