He gave his life to save another. True to the firefighters’ motto “Save or perish”, Corporal Loïc Lenoir did not hesitate on Sunday, August 18 when he saw a woman fall in the middle of the tracks. A volunteer firefighter in Pontorson (Manche) for thirty-six years, the man saved the life of a 72-year-old woman who had fallen in the middle of the level crossing at Pleine-Fougères, in Ille-et-Vilaine. He was unfortunately hit by the train that was arriving at high speed and lost his life there. This Friday, the crowd was dense to pay a final tribute to Loïc Lenoir, who died a hero.
Married and father of two children, the volunteer firefighter was entitled to an official ceremony presided over by the Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin. The latter awarded him the posthumous title of Knight of the National Order of Merit. All firefighters in France and prefecture agents observed a moment of silence that same day.
According to witnesses, the 59-year-old firefighter was in his vehicle with his wife when he saw a woman crossing the level crossing fall onto the tracks. According to the Ille-et-Vilaine gendarmes, the pedestrian had started to cross before the sound signal alerting the arrival of a train. She then panicked and fell. Loïc Lenoir jumped to the scene to help her, before being taken away by the regional train, in front of his wife, who was taken care of by the emergency services. “It’s a real shock for his family, his friends, his colleagues at the emergency center and the town of Pontorson where he was a municipal agent,” the Manche Departmental Fire and Rescue Service said.