Just days after the Nice terror attacks another violent incident is being reported in southern France.
Police in the community of Bollene, Provence, are surrounding a hotel in which an armed man is holed up. The police are maintaining a perimeter of 250 meters around the Formule 1 hotel along with other emergency services, according to RT.
“A deranged man is holed up in the Formule 1 hotel,” a police spokeswoman told Reuters. According to reports the man is armed with a knife and it is thought that he may also be in possession of an explosive device.
According to local media outlet La Dauphine, the hotel has been evacuated. The Formule 1 is situated around 81 miles north of the port city of Marseille on the A7 highway.
“The man is thought to have had a row with the manager,” a local officer added. “We are waiting for negotiators.”
It has since been reported that the man blockaded himself in his room after refusing to pay his tab. Local motorists have taken to social media to express their displeasure at widespread delays caused by the small-scale dispute.
The security situation in France has been tense for some time due to a string of terror attacks. Last November gunmen and suicide bombers killed 130 people in Paris in attacks that were claimed by Islamic State, and last week a man mowed down 84 people in Nice.
Critics claim that President Francois Hollande has failed to shore up security despite declaring a state of emergency and sending troops to patrol the streets.
