18th-century French chateau razed 'by mistake'

[December 05, 2012]  PARIS (AP) -- Residents of a sleepy French village in Bordeaux have been left dumbfounded after discovering their local 18th-century chateau was completely bulldozed "by mistake."

The mayor's office in Yvrac said Wednesday that workers who were hired to renovate the grand 13,000-square-meter (140,000-sqaure-foot) estate in November and raze a small building mixed up them up. Former owner Juliette Marmie says "the Chateau de Bellevue was Yvrac's pride and joy." She adds: "The whole village is in shock. How can this construction firm make such as mistake?" The chateau's current owner Russian businessman Dmitry Stroskin was away and returned home to discover his beloved chateau -- with a grand hall that could seat some 200 people -- was nothing but rubble. [Associated Press] Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.