Sarkozy blames negligence for storm havoc

France's President Nicolas Sarkozy delivers a speech during his visit in the region devastated by Xynthia storm in La Roche-Sur-Yon, western of France, on March 16, 2010.

LA ROCHE-SUR-YON, France (Reuters) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy blamed negligence and bad planning for the damage caused by storms which broke Atlantic sea walls last month, unleashing floods that killed more than 50 people.

"This disaster is the result of a cascade of contentious decisions that went against common sense, of negligence, failure to respect regulations and expert advice that went unregarded," Sarkozy said in a speech to victims in western France.

Declaring he would "assume his responsibilities," Sarkozy said he would ensure that "all lessons were learned" from the disaster and would request local authorities to prevent zones devastated by the storm from being reoccupied.

The western regions of Vendee and Charente Maritime were the areas worst hit by the storm, which caught many people asleep in their beds when it hit.

Even before the storms, environmentalists and some government advisers had warned that several of the affected areas would be unsafe in the event of serious flooding and the disaster led to calls for a halt to building near the sea.

Sarkozy said central government would fund over 40 percent of a project worth billions of euros to overhaul the system of sea walls. It would also pay for half of the cost of emergency repairs to 150 km (93 miles) of levies damaged in the storm.

Sarkozy's center-right UMP party suffered a heavy defeat by the Socialists in the first round of regional elections on Sunday.

(Reporting by Yann Le Guernigou; Writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Louise Ireland)