The body found Friday in Quebec is that of Gilles Claude, according to an announcement by the police this Saturday. The other four French people who disappeared in a lake by his side are still under investigation.
Gilles Claude, like the other seven French tourists who took part in this excursion, was from eastern France. Passionate about snowmobile treks, especially in Quebec where he had come regularly for decades according to his relatives, Gilles Claude, 58, was the father of three international biathletes, Emilien, Florent and Fabien.
The latter climbed on Thursday for the first time on the podium of a stage of the Biathlon World Cup, in Pokljuka in Slovenia. He dedicated his third place to his father.
A special day đ„, and A star that will accompany us all our lives đ« đ, we love you dad đđđ pic.twitter.com/oIsIiBleQ8
- Fabien Claude (@ fabien_claude1) January 23, 2020Divers, drones and helicopters
Thirty police officers, including a dozen divers, helped by helicopters and drones, resumed their intensive searches Saturday morning in the icy waters of Lac Saint-Jean, for the fourth consecutive day, to find the four other tourists French.
They are Yan Thierry, 24, Jean-René Dumoulin, 24, Julien Benoßt, 34, and Arnaud Antoine, 25. "Every day we make discoveries, it's encouraging," says spokesperson for the Sûreté du Québec, who directs the research, Hugues Beaulieu.
The body of Gilles Claude was found more than two kilometers from the initial search points in the RiviĂšre Grande outlet, in an unmarked area at the mouth of Lac Saint-Jean where the accident occurred. This âoff-pisteâ area is considered dangerous due to currents which weaken the ice sheet.
Repatriation
The group was made up of eight tourists from eastern France, three of whom survived minor injuries and a nervous shock. Their guide, a 42-year-old Montrealer, died Wednesday of his injuries.
Newsletter - The essentials of the news
Every morning, the news seen by Le ParisienI'm registering
Your email address is collected by Le Parisien to allow you to receive our news and commercial offers. Find out more
The procedures for the repatriation of the victim's body will be started "very quickly", according to the interim Quebec Minister of Public Security, Andrée Laforest. She added that she was "wholeheartedly" with the French.
