The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Six teenagers killed in a school bus accident in 2016: dismissal for Eiffage, the driver could be tried

2021-09-02T17:57:59.888Z


The side of the truck had sheared the bus and killed six middle and high school students. The La Rochelle public prosecutor's office considers that the company that owns


Soon the end of an interminable soap opera from which the families were suffering.

The Eiffage company has not been implicated but the truck driver is taken to court following the accident of a school bus, gutted by the side of a truck, which had killed six teenagers in 2016 in Rochefort (Charente-Maritime), we learned this Thursday from the prosecution.

The La Rochelle public prosecutor's office made its final indictment on Tuesday in this case, one of the most serious child transport accidents in France since the Beaune tragedy in 1982 (53 dead including 44 children).

A construction truck cut up a school bus, killing six middle and high school students.

Justice demanded a dismissal for the company Eiffage, owner of the dump truck, which had been indicted at the end of 2020 for manslaughter.

"There are not enough elements to lead to prosecution," said prosecutor Laurent Zuchowicz.

"No standard in force at the time of the accident clearly imposed on the company using the vehicle in question an obligation to equip it with warning devices," he then said in a statement.

The driver prosecuted for "unintentional homicides and injuries"

Regarding the driver of the truck, his referral to the criminal court was required for "unintentional homicides and injuries," said magistrate Zuchowicz.

In 2016, a few days after the accident, the then 23-year-old driver was indicted for manslaughter and unintentional injury, and left free under judicial supervision.

According to the prosecutor's statement, the final indictment was notified to the parties on August 27 and they have one month to make observations.

The examining magistrate will issue his order at the end of this period.

On the morning of February 11, 2016, in Rochefort, the coach crossed at around 7.15 am the road of a dump truck, which left an Eiffage warehouse 800 m away.

The side of the coach had been sheared by the open side of the truck, killing six of the fifteen teenagers on board: five high school students and a middle school student.

Two others were injured.

Read also Rochefort drama: the investigation is closed, 5 years after the death of 6 teenagers

The technical investigations, and in particular the reconstruction of the facts a few days later, focused on this side wall (the rear metal wall holding the load in place).

According to the prosecution at the time, it was open at 90 degrees at the time of the collision, an "unusual and dangerous" position, and it has seemed for a while.

Shortly before, a motorist had to swerve to avoid it.

It was still dark at the time of the impact, it was drizzling, and the driver only saw the drop side open at the last moment: the impact had exploded his windshield, stopping the coach which had continued its course a little under the effect of inertia.

The accident had shocked the town of Rochefort and that of Surgères, 25 km away, where the six victims aged 15 to 18 were attending school.

Source: leparis

All tech articles on 2021-09-02

You may like

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.