A gendarme died hit by a truck on the A13 motorway, near Bouquelon, in Eure, learned France Blue Normandy with the firefighters on Tuesday, October 25. Seven people were also injured in this serious accident, including three gendarmes. The Ministry of the Interior speaks of a “road traffic accident” during a court operation.
The facts occurred a little before three o’clock on Tuesday morning. The 21-year-old driver of the truck hit five vehicles in total, including two from the gendarmerie, a tow truck, a vehicle from the SAPN, the motorway company, and another vehicle.
According to Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, “four gendarmes were hit” by this truck, as they proceeded to “the arrest of drug traffickers”. The Minister confirms the death of one of the soldiers, the other three are “injured, one of them very seriously”he said in a tweet on Tuesday.
Last night, during the arrest of drug traffickers in Eure, 4 gendarmes were hit by a truck.
One of them died. I send my condolences to his family and comrades. Full support for the three injured gendarmes, one of whom is very seriously.— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) October 25, 2022
“Around 2:50 a.m., when the operations were over and the investigators had the offending vehicle removed by a repairman in the presence of a patrolman from the motorway concession company, a heavy truck struck the device, mowing down the soldier and the other responders including another gendarme, very seriously injured”says the Ministry of the Interior in a press release.
The gendarme killed in the accident was 47 years old, was married and had four children, according to Beauvau. He was a non-commissioned officer, engaged in the national gendarmerie since 1999 and he served in the research section of Rennes since July 2017.
The Ministry of the Interior adds that the vital prognosis for one of the injured gendarmes is “always committed” late Tuesday morning. According to information from France Bleu Normandie, the latter was airlifted to hospital in Rouen. The other two gendarmes, aged 35 and 48, are slightly affected. Gérald Darmanin addressed his “condolences to [la] family and [aux] comrades” of the deceased soldier as well as his “full support” to the other three.
The driver of the truck was also slightly injured, according to the Eure firefighters. The driver of the SAPN, aged 43, and the two men present in the car checked, aged 25, were slightly affected. The A13 motorway is closed in the Paris-Caen direction in the area of the accident.