They answered to the first name of Claude, Jimmy, Marcelle or Laure, and came from Lorraine for adapted holidays. Ten adults with disabilities perished in the fire of a cottage in Wintzenheim (Haut-Rhin) on Wednesday, as well as an accompanying person.
Since the faces are closed, at the headquarters of the AEIM of Meurthe-et-Moselle, in Villers-lès-Nancy. This parents’ association which takes care of people with intellectual disabilities is “a bereaved family” by the loss of four of its residents, says Denis Renaud, its president. And to recall that from now on, for the survivors as for the residents, psychological assistance work will be essential. “Not seeing their colleagues return when they return from vacation” will come as a shock to them. “It is a job that will be very important. »
People in “relative autonomy” able to work
It was on the floor of the Alsatian gîte which caught fire on Wednesday morning that Jennyfer, 26, Claude, 49, Jimmy, 33 and Jérôme, “around thirty”, were staying. Denis Renaud explains that these people were in “relative autonomy” and that they “were able to work in Esat”, professional centers where the work changes regularly. Three of the four victims were welcomed all year round in the same home in Meurthe-et-Moselle.
This Thursday, the Minister for Persons with Disabilities, Fadila Khattabi, met with the families of these victims. One of the residents had booked this vacation in this cottage for the second time “because it was moments of happiness, memories, intense activities”, she reported.
” We will miss you “
The Boxing club of Joeuf (Meurthe-et-Moselle) shared on social networks its “tremendous sadness” after learning of the death of Claude, who resided at the Jean Collon home in Val-de-Briey and was a member of his team of adapted boxing. “We will miss you,” they slipped.
In Amnéville (Moselle), bouquets of flowers were placed at the entrance to the Robert-Gautier home managed by the APEI, in tribute to the three victims who lived there. The association also lost another of its members, who lived at the medico-educational institute “Le point du jour” in Pierrevilliers.
Jean-Claude Jacoby, president of the association, finds it difficult to hide his emotion when he talks about Jérôme, Fatima, Laure, and Marcelle who were between the ages of 40 and “about fifty”. In this home of 70 people, the victims were known to everyone. “They were there every night, they ate there every day (…) We mourn them and we will always mourn them”, he confesses.
Essential psychological support work
“Her name was Marcelle (…) She was my aunt and she worked and lived” in Pierrevilliers, testifies, photo in support, her nephew Julien on Facebook. “She was endearing and had a strong character (…) I (we) miss her already”.
Two other deceased adults were also taken care of in Moselle, without their identity having been communicated at this stage. Among the victims is also a companion, whose identity, gender, age or attachment structure are currently unknown.
28 people present in the building at the time of the fire
A total of 28 people were present in the building at the time of the fire. The people staying in another gite on the ground floor as well as five adults upstairs managed to get out. On Wednesday, two victims were taken care of: one was hospitalized and the other was taken to a hotel, according to the Haut-Rhin prefecture. They were able to return home on Thursday.
Two “younger” residents of Amnéville were able to return to the association’s premises. They were staying upstairs, but managed to get out “because they heard the alarm”, according to Jean-Claude Jacoby. Another survivor, a resident belonging to the AEIM who managed to jump from the first floor before being caught by “a resident on the ground floor who had already come out”, explained Denis Renaud. An association of Besançon, called Idoine, indicated that its members installed on the ground floor were all unscathed and had returned to Franche-Comté on Wednesday.
A tribute will be paid to the victims during Sunday mass at the Saint-Joseph d’Amnéville church.