Failure of emergency numbers: what we know about deaths probably linked to the incident

A breakdown with disastrous consequences.

Less than 48 hours after the malfunction which prevented telephone access to emergency numbers for about 7 hours on Wednesday evening, Prime Minister Jean Castex deplores the deaths of four people, probably linked to this incident.

"We deplore the victims who are likely to have been caused by this serious incident," said the head of government on Friday, after a new interministerial crisis meeting.

If the situation has returned to normal, all the light will have to be shed on the unacceptable dysfunctions which have impacted the emergency numbers and everything will have to be implemented so that they do not happen again.

pic.twitter.com/b68Z33UwCi

- Jean Castex (@JeanCASTEX) June 4, 2021

According to him, these suspicious deaths are "four, subject of course to what the inquiries say, in particular the judicial inquiries which are opened".

Read also Failure of emergency numbers: 5 minutes to understand an alarming malfunction

The deceased would be a baby in Vendée, a sexagenarian in Morbihan and two people in Reunion.

To these deaths could be added that of a 54-year-old woman in the Bouches-du-Rhône.

A two-year-old baby in Vendée

Victim of breathing difficulties, a 28 month old baby died Thursday morning in the town of Chavagnes-en-Paillers, in Vendée.

For the prefect Benoît Brocard, this "drama" occurred "in the context of the national dysfunction of the emergency abbreviated numbers".

National breakdown of emergency numbers 15, 18, 17 and 112. Death of a 28-month-old child in # Vendée.

Read the press release at https://t.co/c0fgc350FO pic.twitter.com/jNaX4tntB0

- Prefect of the Vendée (@PrefetVendee) June 3, 2021

The prefecture spoke in a statement to send its condolences to the family of the young child and to specify that an administrative investigation was opened to shed light on this tragedy.

A sixty-year-old in Morbihan

Wednesday evening, in the early hours of the blackout, another victim was in distress, in Morbihan this time.

On several occasions, the wife of this 63-year-old man tried to reach the 15 and 112. To no avail.

She finally transported her husband herself to the Vannes hospital center (Morbihan), but the man died in the meantime of a cardiovascular arrest.

Here again, an administrative investigation was opened and the Vannes public prosecutor's office diligently investigates "looking for the causes of death".

The management of Vannes hospital urges caution.

According to her, "the elements do not allow a clear conclusion" to the existence of a link between the failure suffered by the emergency numbers and the death of this man.

Two people in Reunion

At the same time, in Reunion, a man died of a cardiopulmonary arrest. His wife had, again, unsuccessfully tried to join the Samu (15) "for about twenty minutes", specifies the prefecture in a press release published Thursday evening. "The absence of direct contact between the wife and the Samu because of network problems will not have made it possible to precisely characterize the medical situation of the victim before the engagement of help," regrets the prefecture.

Another death linked to the blackout is to be deplored in Reunion, without more information having been given yet.

"During the night of June 2-3, two deaths were reported by the Samu, the prefecture said Thursday.

Investigations are underway to determine whether the difficulties in reaching the emergency services have had an effect on the quality of care for these two people, ”she said.

A fifth suspicious death in the Bouches-du-Rhône

A fifth death could be added to the dramatic list of victims of this dysfunction.

In Aix-en-Provence, a 54-year-old woman suffering from high blood pressure and diabetes died after trying to join the Samu on several occasions, according to a security source who spoke to our editorial staff.