RN4 : Route gratuite, route maudite

RN4 : Route gratuite, route maudite

11 p.m., at the Paré-le-Monial fire station in Saône-et-Loire. Roman, 34-year-old lieutenant, just received an alert. On a traffic accident, a clean heavy-duty car, with a notion of a person incarcerated inside, unconscious, priority for accidents. The accident occurred at the entrance to a village of 300 inhabitants. On the departmental road, 985. A young driver and a 44-ton truck collided head-on. The shock was extremely violent. The colleagues are being extricated. There’s a 25-year-old who hit the truck here. There is cardio-respiratory arrest. The situation is rather dramatic. Emergency services must reach the victim trapped in the passenger compartment as quickly as possible to try to resuscitate him. With the help of witnesses to the accident, A dozen firefighters are trying to remove the roof of the car. One of the firefighters finally manages to reach the young man and immediately begins cardiac massage to keep him alive. Issue, the violence of the impact threw the engine and the steering wheel onto his legs, trapping his lower body in the sheet metal. The rescuers take turns performing cardiac massage. Romain is worried. Every minute counts. And the steering wheel always traps the victim. The steering wheel is finally free. Rescuers can extract the driver. THE young man is still in cardio-respiratory arrest. The firefighters continue the massage to restart his heart. Roman, the lieutenant, tries to understand the circumstances of the accident. The driver is diverted onto the opposite road. The truck driver was unable to avoid it. He tried to squeeze, We see it there, on the side. He crashed into the truck’s grille. And then he took off afterward, behind, on the side of the road. It’s a high-kinetic accident for us. This is what is most dramatic about internal and even external injuries. It’s a very violent accident. A priori, The car and truck were respecting the speed limits. But a head-on collision between two vehicles traveling at 80 km/h is equivalent to hitting a wall at 160. The truck driver is in shock, But he was a little luckier. No injuries. He tested negative for alcohol and drugs. The heavyweight, him, he is rather shocked, rather in a state… In addition, the problem, it’s just him, with height, He sees the car coming towards him. There is no way he can do anything to avoid it. It’s extremely traumatic. This spectacular accident is also an ordeal for the witnesses, like this driver who saw it all. There, They are being resuscitated. It was extremely violent, Madam Yes, there are teeth. This mother had the fright of her life. Accompanied by her 11-year-old daughter, she had launched herself into overtaking the wrecked truck. She gave up at the last second. I think she’s just waiting for one thing, is to return home and rightly so. She will be questioned by the police and, after, she will be able to leave the premises, return home. In the SAMU ambulance, A medical resuscitation team took over from the firefighters. They do everything they can to save the young man’s life. In vain, so you have. I did 15-minute series of resuscitation in addition to the road. Yeah, yeah, in 3 quarters of an hour pretty flat injected like 30 mg of adrenaline, 25 years old. I don’t know OK, It was violent. It was too violent. Above all, He was stuck. The speed and efforts of the rescuers were not enough. The police must now determine the causes of the accident. Falling asleep, overspeed, discomfort or cell phone. At this stage of the investigation, all hypotheses are considered. See you later. In 2016, Road violence in France has increased for the third consecutive year, with 3469 deaths, almost 10 deaths per day. To understand the reasons for this scourge, We filmed two of the most dangerous roads in France. First of all, the RCEA in the center. 3 PN, Apparently, it’s from the back. Crossing France from East to West, The RCEA is nicknamed the road of death. The number of deaths there is five times higher than the national average. Often involved in these fatal accidents, heavy goods vehicles. There are around 16,000 of them borrowing daily, the RCEA. Exasperated, As soon as they can, Motorists try to overtake them. In often perilous maneuvers. Look at, Can you explain to me where he’s going to fall back? I feel like I’m going to roulette with him. In the east of France, We filmed behind the scenes of National 4. Police and breakdown services are on the alert. 147. Despite the efforts of law enforcement, risky behaviors are increasing. Alcohol, narcotics, dangerous passages, Cell phones or speeding are the cause of many pile-ups. A split second. And then it would cause an accident, a second accident. Some young drivers get into their cars while completely drunk. Come on, I’m on the sidewalk. Yes, Yes, Yes. And me, I can be seen clearly. Others confuse the national road with a racing circuit. Without being aware of the danger. You were stopped at a speed of 154, Sir. Yes, pardon. The police do not hesitate to deploy major resources. SO, in return. On the National 4 and the RCEA, immersion in the hectic daily life of firefighters, you hear me Tow truck drivers and police officers. Village of Sanvigne, 40 km from the scene of the accident. It was in this house that we found Nathalie, Morgane’s mother, the young driver who lost his life in a head-on collision with a heavy goods vehicle. So Morgane. Here, he was 17 years old, Here he was 22 years old. For a month, Nathalie and her new husband, Julien, have been living a nightmare. They had to take home the belongings of the young man, who lived in a small studio a few kilometers away. So there you have it. Here, This was his room before, where his bed was taken apart to put all his things from his apartment. For two years, his son had gained his independence. He had landed a permanent job in fast food. The day of the accident, And, like every Monday evening… He was supposed to join his mother for the traditional family dinner. I waited for my son, it never happened. He was a very punctual person. As a rule. I feel like he told me he was coming around 7am, 7:30 a.m. and I finished work at 8 a.m. When I arrived at 8:15, It was already not normal that he was not there. So, after a message and a call, Afterwards, I took the initiative to call the hospital. To find out what it was all about. That’s when I was told my son had died. After the shock of the announcement, Now comes the time for questions. Nathalie tries to understand what happened that famous Monday at 7 p.m. The only certainty for her, Her son was on the phone with a friend. In my opinion, the moment they were cut, it’s the moment of impact, since it’s the time of the accident. SO, there’s no point in twisting it. In my opinion, This is what caused the accident. SO, It must have slipped out of his hands or something. In my opinion, This seems most likely to me, Not to mention that he didn’t drink, he didn’t smoke. And so, It was proven by the tests that he had taken absolutely nothing. The gendarmes’ investigation was closed without further action by the public prosecutor. Nathalie, She, remains convinced that her son’s death was caused by using a cell phone while driving. An increasingly widespread phenomenon that has become the bête noire of law enforcement on the RCEA and on all other dangerous roads. 500 km further north, in the east of the country, another national road is particularly accident-prone. The RN4. Connecting Paris to Strasbourg, This free road is used by more than 20,000 vehicles every day. This two-way, two-lane road looks like a quiet highway, but it is actually fraught with pitfalls. Potholes or cracks. It hits. Another one, another one, another one, another one, another one. Not to mention the dangerous behavior of certain motorists and heavy goods vehicle drivers. It’s limited to just a few fish. So many risk factors that cause around 400 accidents on the National 4 each year. On the section of the National 4, which crosses the Meuse, to combat road insecurity, The gendarmerie has a brigade of around twenty men. On a motorbike, unmarked car or helicopter. “You go ahead to leave the finger that goes into the straitjacket.” These guardian angels of the road intervene day and night to track down reckless drivers. Today, Ludovic, 35-year-old warrant officer and his colleague, positioned themselves on a bridge. They overlook the road to chase away risky behavior, including the use of the telephone while driving. Just minutes after their arrival, The police spotted a female driver with a cell phone in her hand. He immediately sets off in pursuit of the vehicle. Rolling at full speed, he quickly catches up with the driver, who, at that moment, hung up his phone. Madam, Good morning. We come to check you, It’s for phone use. Ah, you have a phone Yes, you had your phone in your hand. His phone call will cost him 135 euros and 3 points on his license. Using a cell phone while driving increases the risk of accidents by three times. Yet, The driver does not seem aware that she is a danger with her phone in her hand. I’m furious. 3 points. And the phone, as a result, he is… Well, I threw it in my bag. So, there, you were hands-free, that’s it Yes, it had put the loudspeaker on. I called him before you started. We have the right to smoke No, we don’t have the right either. We are not allowed to profit from an apple, We are not allowed to eat a banana. Yes, There. So imagine, phone. They saw that I had the phone in my hand. I remind you, No, I won’t call you back. See you later. Hello. You see, Mrs, I’ll give you back the documents. So, NOW, I’m angry. You see, NOW, I’m going to drive badly. You think you’re going to drive badly Ah, Ben, yes. I didn’t say you drive badly. Well no, Never. You are driving while using the phone. Yes, but hey, It’s the dangerous people who need to be stopped. It’s not the people… I wasn’t taking any risks, I wasn’t putting anyone in danger. So, it annoys me, it annoys me, It annoys me. Using the phone, you necessarily take risks. Like that, when there is no one there. And yes, if there had been a lot of traffic, if… Yes, Yes, there are times. Good, you do your job, I am in time, I agree. I wish you a good day. Good day, Mrs. She doesn’t realize that when she has her eyes glued to the phone, she no longer has her eyes on the road. She still realizes that she made a mistake. But for her, it wasn’t dangerous. The police are resuming their hunt for reckless drivers. Having your phone in your hand is reprehensible, But another behavior is also in the sights of the police. This driver, behind the wheel of his heavy goods vehicle, is using headphones. It has been against the law for two years. I will ask you for your driver’s license and then the documents. So, we come to check you, It is for the use of the order. Wear earbuds. Ah, well, I tell you so too. So, there, the fine, That’s three points. I have seven left. It’s expensive, paid Yes, anyway, I say it’s a high price to pay. It is true that the East was not made to help, But on a road like this, We are less dangerous than someone driving in the city with a phone in their hand. If you are online, you can’t listen to our music, you are not in the environment, you don’t listen to the environment. With its 100,000 km per year, This truck driver cannot imagine his journeys without the company of his cell phone. You knew that earbuds were forbidden Yes, I knew it. We, on the road, It’s not to say, we’re bored. If you don’t have communication with friends while driving, The road is getting monotonous. It’s true, it’s 9am, we are far from our family, we like having friends, laughing on the phone, tell us how our weekend went, It’s a Monday. According to Inserm scientists, the National Institute of Health and Medical Research, Using our phone while driving reduces our concentration by 70%. But this is not the only scourge affecting French roads. Sunday, 5am. The evening ends in this nightclub located a few hundred meters from the RN4. To minimize the risk of accidents, The nightclub has installed a breathalyzer. Are we going to call you? What I propose to you, Sir, It’s sleeping in the parking lot. All right. I have my room with me. A soufflé at worst. A soufflé Hold, Paris. One meter zero. Yes, It’s a study. This is a test study. It’s the same machine that the gendarmes have, In fact. It’s the exact same machine inside. Come on, Have a good evening. THANKS. To return safely, some have designated a SAM, the one who doesn’t drink and brings others back. Who should stay? Me, I am SAM. I’m bringing back more alcoholics. I’m bringing back more alcoholics. I’m bringing back more alcoholics. I’m bringing back more alcoholics. 2, him 5 too. 0, You haven’t drunk too much, scholar. Unlike this young man, other drivers take the wheel, although drunk. What they don’t know, is that a barrier of gendarmes awaits them firmly. Good evening, blood alcohol control, have you consumed alcohol? Breathe normally and continue in the end, all the time of the ringing. Come on, Goodbye. At the head of the device, Sebastian, 39 years old, targets at-risk populations. Young drivers and truck drivers. Drinking and driving increases the risk of fatal accidents tenfold. Please. Very quickly, An 18-year-old man leaving the nightclub tested positive. But driver control is proving a bit more complicated than expected. Attention ! Go to the sidewalk! And I can be seen clearly. Because of a very drunk passenger in another vehicle. Go to the sidewalk! All right ! It will be better. THANKS. The 18-year-old driver, him, is about to blow into a breathalyzer that will precisely determine his blood alcohol level. You stole his license Yes, Me. The young driver is still on probation. He has no right to make a mistake. If he doesn’t want to lose his driving license, it must not exceed 0.10 mg per liter of expired air, the equivalent of a small glass of alcohol. It’s what, Me ? 0.30. It is three times the dose that is beyond. Yes, Exactly. A vodka. A vodka. 0.30 for a vodka. Let’s have three vodkas, or a triple dose. The sanction is final. His license was immediately withdrawn. The young man will have to retake it in several months. I just had a drink early in the evening. A little busy. I didn’t think it was this bad. Losing his license is a disaster for the young man. He uses his car every morning to go to work. That’s what I feel. anymore. He said, towards them, towards me, He said I have to go to work, I don’t even know what to say. That was life. Good evening, Sir. Screen for alcohol. It is not the only priority of the gendarmes. You are still quite pale, you are tired. They also monitor drug use using a saliva test. A driver will test positive for cannabis and will have their driving licence suspended immediately. Whether it’s alcohol or drugs, It’s disinhibiting when you see the consequences it can have. There is no need to harshly punish this type of driving behavior. Partygoers aren’t the only ones in the police’s sights. A little further on, Bertrand and Franck are targeting road professionals. 7am. At that hour, There are many of them starting their working day. Good day sir Without forcing, 4-5 seconds and a clap at the end. Good luck ! So you turn off your headlights. The police spotted this man behaving suspiciously. A truck driver on his way to work. He appears to be drunk and cannot start his vehicle. Unlock, remove the key. You allow me to try Please. THANKS. You blow, there is a scrolling of arrows, of stars. When I tell you to stop, you stop blowing. Go for it. The 45-year-old is about to start a day of delivery behind the wheel of a 40-ton refrigerated truck. 0.57, There you are above. 0.57 mg per liter of exhaled air, that is, more than one gram of alcohol in the blood. A rate twice the legal limit. His license was immediately withdrawn. You can no longer drive. Someone needs to be able to come and get you. It would be nice to have a solution. If we keep you, It’s a slightly more cumbersome procedure. The driver does not seem to be aware of the seriousness of the situation. You felt able to drive Yes, perfectly. After, it’s a kind of endurance, health, I don’t know what. Apparently, I still have asthma. I didn’t sleep enough, but it’s the same. So there is still an overshoot, I didn’t go down as a mole. And there, This is the end of my life. Who is it Professional. Well, yes. That’s exactly what I was thinking. This is the most important thing. The man faces a fine of 4,500 euros, in addition to the suspension of his license. The trucker risks being unemployed. Be careful. Come on, Goodbye. But the police prevented a rolling bomb from taking to the road. With such a high rate, the risk of causing a fatal accident is multiplied by 30. I’m glad I got it out of circulation. Because it’s still a danger. More than a danger. Because when an alcoholic person, with a level like that, has 40 tons in their arms, it remains a danger. The police apply zero tolerance to heavy goods vehicles, night and day. Today, Sebastian. The captain tackles another dangerous behavior of these giants of the road. No, That, but the… The captain decided to pull out all the stops. Thanks to a helicopter equipped with a super-powerful camera, The police will be tracking down those who fail to respect safety distances. On the ground, The bikers will be tasked with intercepting illegal vehicles. The helicopter flies over the road at a height of 300 meters. At this distance, The police can monitor the flow of traffic without being detected. After a few minutes, They spot a truck that is endangering other road users. They do not respect safety distances. The marks on the side are used as a measurement. The regulatory distance between two trucks must be at least one line, that is, 50 meters. For more than a kilometer, This blue truck is dangerously sticking to the heavy goods vehicle in front of it. It doesn’t seem like anything, but at the slightest brake application, This can cause a pile-up. The helicopter’s camera is equipped with a very powerful zoom, which allows a license plate to be read even from more than 2 km away. With their motorcycles, which can reach 200 km/h, The bikers chase the truck. Heavy goods vehicles are said to be involved in just over a third of the accidents that occur on the RN4. This driver’s recklessness will cost him 90 euros and a 3-point penalty on his driving license. You don’t stop a 38-ton truck like you stop a car. So, it is obvious that even lightly loaded, It doesn’t stop like a car. What happened then, sir? I just got yelled at. Attention, attention. The truck driver is angry. He doesn’t seem to realize that his behavior is extremely risky. The distance, it remains… Extremely dangerous when not respected. Person braking in front, anyway, unexpectedly, there is the reflex, there is time, there’s all that. And then a heavyweight, Good, Even if technology makes it slow down a lot, there are still 40 tons pushing behind. Failure to respect safety distances is said to be the cause of nearly 5,000 accidents each year in our country. On the RN4, but also 500 km to the south. On the RCEA. The Central-European-Atlantic Route, 1800 km of asphalt, crossing France, from Eastern countries to Spain. 16,000 trucks use it daily because it is free. A congested road where emergency services are confronted with road accidents on a daily basis. Paré-le-Monial, in Saône-et-Loire. A town of 9,000 inhabitants, nestled just a few meters from the RCEA. Here, at the fire station, 50 rescuers are on alert, 24 hours a day. I want the vehicle to be calibrated immediately. Emergency extrication or medical treatment. You hear me In training or in real situations, 8 professional firefighters and 42 volunteers are mobilized under the command of Romain, a 34-year-old lieutenant. We can put people behind to recover the board. He has been working on the RCEA for three years, An axis where the number of deaths is five times higher than the national average, often blamed on the thousands of heavy goods vehicles it uses. At the barracks today, It’s Stéphane, 35 years old, which is permanent. Let’s go guys! Compared with Accident. Port Polo, Direction Monson, RC1. Shop. In three minutes, Firefighters must be equipped to start their operations within six minutes of the alert. The accident involved three heavy goods vehicles. Firefighters were unable to provide details at this time. 3PL, Apparently, I’m talking to you backwards. Every second counts. Lives may be at stake. What do you think? Especially in heavyweight, what are we thinking about We can especially imagine the violence that the shock can have. And we are already planning for the number of potential victims. All sirens blaring, Firefighters travel the 35 km that separate them from the accident. On site, Two heavy goods vehicles have just collided on one of the busiest sections of the RCEA. Priority for Romain, The lieutenant, the health status of the victims. He wants to make an initial assessment. How many injured are there? There are just a few more injured people in the truck. Only one injured, the driver. Two heavyweights. Not three. Three heavyweights. Three heavyweights, All right. There is no pain in the neck No. No tingling in the hands, not in the legs? Neither. No pain in the neck? THANKS. This truck driver crashed into the heavy goods vehicle in front of him. He only has a bump on his head, a miracle. It slowed down the first time, I saw him with the hazard lights on. And in fact, He took off the hazard lights and we started to move on. So me, I relaxed, I looked at the air from a pot on the left. And in fact, When I looked ahead, it had started again. And there, I couldn’t do anything, I put my foot on the brake and crashed into it. Miracle, miracle. For Stéphane, 15 years old, by trade, The truck driver narrowly escaped death. The metal cap above his cabin saved his life. If it hadn’t been for the cap, because it is a carrier in fact, He would have completely hit the target and he would have been completely trapped in it. Actually, This allows him to preserve his survival zone. In fact, inside. Effectively, He’s still got a fair bit of luck because the accidents, which involve several heavy goods vehicles… It can quickly become dramatic. The driver, him, It’s right behind the windshield. It’s not like a car where you have the hood and the whole engine part that absorbs part of the shock. Him, he must have seen himself arriving live in the trailer. While the trucker is being treated, Romain has another emergency to deal with. The rest area is transformed into a makeshift diversion to ease traffic flow, because there is a risk of explosion. I have a big diesel leak. It’s a debit. We will be in protection and then, afterwards, we will deal with the pollution level with the DIR. The impact ripped open the tank, filled with 650 liters of diesel, from one of the two trucks. A fire can start at any time. The first driver was transporting two tractors. But the lieutenant is worried. He does not know the cargo of the second trailer. Sir, you confirm me, you transport packaging. Cardboard No, no packaging, cardboard, It’s not metal packaging. Okay, So. No risk of fire? There is no risk of flammable material in the trucks? No, it’s on the… Okay, All right. No fire, nor any over-accident, Rescuers avoided the worst. But the driver of the second truck, like many truck drivers, questions the dangerousness of the RCEA. I don’t feel safe on these roads. I’m always afraid of crossing a truck with a driver half asleep or distracted by his cell phone, It is also that of the occupation. Yes, there is no sweetness of security, there is no separation. And then the distances are not respected, Speeds are not respected. Failure to respect safety distances is believed to be the cause of this accident. Yet, on the RCEA, Trucks must drive at least 50 meters apart. Because of these dangerous behaviors, around ten people lose their lives every year on this route. Death Road has existed since the early 1970s. At the time, the situation was even worse. At the Paré-le-Monial barracks, Even the oldest firefighters will never forget certain tragedies. Like Christian. 54 years old, the dean of the barracks. In its box, he carefully preserves 33 years of intervention on the RCEA. For example, here, in 1984, This is my first fatal accident, where a car was under a truck. And we didn’t know how we were going to be victims inside. How old were you at that time? I was 21 years old. I also unfortunately make interventions that will never be erased from my memory. Example, A stroller that was mowed down by a smear morgue in town. I also kill five people at once, one morning of July 14th. The dad, the mother, the son, the girl and the other car in front also died. A stroller on the RCEA, This seems unthinkable today. But in the 80s, The route of the road was very different. She crossed many villages, endangering the lives of residents. At that time, in France, road violence causes nearly 10,000 deaths per year, three times more than today. In 1990, with our colleagues from Marcy, Charon, Dibouin, Younglard, There were 42 deaths in the space of 4 months. Another time. NOW, We have 17 deaths in Seine-et-Loire in the middle of the year, practically. Before, It was maybe 200-300 dead. But it’s true that it marks a firefighter’s life. The scourge of accidents on the RCEA has lasted for 40 years. Have the public authorities taken all necessary measures to stop it? It was only at the end of the 1990s that a multi-billion euro project was announced. The state wants to transform 200 km of road into two lanes for greater safety. But the work is delayed. And in 2017, only a third of the route is double track. These sections, with two lanes, appear to be safe. The problem, This is because these are actually just overtaking zones, followed by shrinkage. A real trap for motorists. Result, Dangerous behavior is increasing. Exasperated by the thousands of heavy goods vehicles, Some users do not hesitate to overtake zebras. To get past the endless lines of trucks. Another very widespread practice, these drivers who engage in very risky overtaking, with very little visibility. For all the inhabitants of the region, This road has become a source of anxiety. They nicknamed it the two-lane cemetery. Mathilde, 35 years old, never ventures onto the RCEA when accompanied by Thao, his 6-year-old son. Please put your seat back properly. I’ll go around and tie you up. Originally from Saint-Etienne, She has lived in Saône-et-Loire for 7 years. So, before arriving in the region, I had never heard of the RCEA. And after, On the other hand, Once I got here, that I started to take the road, there, I knew the sad fame of this road, In fact. We know his reputation and so, we always have in our heads. The idea of the accident, the idea of a problem that might arise. Mathilde saves her son from the RCEA. But it is commercial. She travels nearly 100,000 km per year. Every day or almost, She has to take the most dangerous road in France. They were told to be careful and take extra precautions. But like almost everywhere in France, perhaps even more particularly here. After, We know that this is the road that allows us to get home in the evening too. It’s good. It’s true that you have to be careful. We never take these things calmly. Today, she has to travel nearly 100 km on the RCEA. Come on, here we go In 7 years, Mathilde had time to dissect the behavior of users and all the dangers of this road. According to her, Thousands of trucks and hurried motorists don’t mix well. Look what’s coming your way. Look at, he died lightly, you see, with his white car. He’s looking to see if he can’t try to overtake, possibly. Following several near misses, Mathilde prefers to stay behind, even when an overtaking lane presents itself. So, we arrive the same. Small lane with 800 meters of overtaking. Look what’s coming your way. You’re going to risk doubling up there now. There were 800 meters, All right, but hey, I’m not brave sometimes. Behind, he is brave. Brave or reckless, Mathilde, the mother of the family, prefers not to take any risks. When overtaking, at the limit, a single deviation of a truck or a motorist, and it’s the accident. His dangerous behavior will be repeated throughout the journey. Once again, the driver narrowly swerves. Even more dangerous, a little further, These trucks do not respect safety distances and overtake each other in a restricted overtaking zone. There are 800 meters of overtaking lanes, The trucks overtake each other. Even I, I don’t double there. I think this is the part, This is the aberration of this road here. There is nothing more dangerous. Look at, Can you explain to me where he’s going to fall back? Look at, 200 meters left. Look what’s coming your way. So. And you, you’re here, lambda, So here it is, I slow him down, just to let him pass. But here it is, It is… A daily stressful situation for Mathilde, who has thought about changing jobs several times. Actually, It’s spite. And then, it’s anger too, because that’s it, It’s anger. That is to say, my God, but when will it stop? And then, I don’t want to be next, In fact. That’s especially it, I think, that we say to ourselves. It’s good, I don’t want to be next, but here it is, there are times… We will perhaps limit the risks, we will stay. Will Mathilde still suffer for much longer? The dangers of the RCEA A few weeks ago, The public authorities have announced a major step forward. 70% The road is expected to be expanded into two lanes by 2050. In the east of France, return to the RN4. This national, She… And well appointed, two times two lanes over the entire route. Yet, a few years ago, It was the scene of a terrible road accident, which left five dead. That day, Vincent and Séverine’s lives have been turned upside down by horror. Ah, it’s there, eh. My heart is broken. I have wind pain. It is at this place, on the RN4, that Vincent’s two sisters and their three children, aged 7, 10 and 13 years old, suddenly lost their lives in a head-on collision with a truck. It’s very complicated. Yeah, very complicated. Me, I can’t get over it. On July 25, 2014, around 8am, a heavy goods vehicle is driving in the left lane. Vincent’s sisters arrive in the opposite direction. Suddenly, the truck crosses the guardrail, crashes the car and ends up in a ditch. According to the survey, The driver had consumed cocaine a few hours before getting behind the wheel. When you take drugs in the morning, It’s like loading your shotgun. It’s that simple. You take cocaine, heroin, You are uncontrollable if you are a shotgun. And on top of that, you take a truck in your hands, There you are… It’s not a detached grenade, you commit an attack on the road. At the time, The two tracks were separated by simple metal barriers. Since the accident, They were replaced by a concrete platform. Vincent is convinced of it. This fatal accident… Could have been avoided. It’s a hollow, All right ? So it’s a downhill run both ways. Put up safety barriers, That, it crashes. Even a motorcycle crushes it, the safety barriers. So a heavy goods vehicle, He passed, It crushed them. There, a piece of concrete, a concrete wall, in the middle, It would have definitely deflected the truck. I’m not saying it would have broken him, but that would have diverted the truck, It’s sure. Wouldn’t be there, on the certain. For Vincent and his family, the story is not over. In a few days, The verdict of the reckless driver’s appeal trial will take place. They hope he will receive the maximum sentence. Among those present on the day of the disaster, Pascal, a repairman, which regularly operates on the RN4. Two and a half years after the accident, He still keeps the wrecks of the car and truck at home. They are sealed until the end of the legal proceedings. There, It’s the remains of the carcass, of the car, of the poor unfortunates. We can clearly see the location of the heavy goods vehicle that is taking them from the front, that crosses the car. The five bodies remained trapped inside. There is no dashboard anymore, there is no steering wheel anymore. The car is rolled, that’s the word. It is laminated. The shock was extremely violent. Pascal is confronted with road accidents on a daily basis. But in 30 years of career, he had never experienced such a tragedy. That accident gave me nightmares, woke me up at night. It’s true that it’s quite hard. When we see destruction like this, I would say that any normal human being cannot remain indifferent. The heavy goods vehicle also bears the scars of the extremely violent collision. We can still see all the traces of sheet metal that smashed against the truck. We can see that it really forced us, that it really hit. Very, very hard. But it’s the iron pot against the clay pot. This terrible accident could have claimed a sixth victim, the reckless driver himself. But after four days in a coma, he survived. A true miracle that he owes to Laurent, another truck driver who was passing on the RN4 at the time of the accident. It’s there, It’s that time. That day, Laurent was among the first to arrive at the scene of the tragedy, with two police officers. I arrived at the wreck and that’s when the police told me that there was nothing more they could do for them. They are all decimated. Laurent, former volunteer firefighter, then decides to help the truck driver. So the truck… He was in there, completely upside down. So, completely upside down. So I crawled, I broke branches, I approached the cabin, I leaned over, And that’s when I saw he was upside down. On his seat, he was in his truck. Laurent then only listens to his first aid instinct. I wanted to take his pulse, impossible, because, like a turtle, head down, but really in the shoulders. So after that I grabbed the hands. And so I persisted. I told him If you can hear me, shake my hand, shake my hand. And at some point, I felt resistance. Not like a handshake, but a resistance. So I thought to myself, he is alive. At that moment, This father makes a decisive gesture. He came to catch his breath. As if he had swallowed his tongue back. Because the face has completely changed color. And so, I opened my mouth and said him, twice in a row, twice in a row. I searched for the language hooked to prevent suffocation. I did my part, I saved him. I’ll stop there. It’s hard. The day after the accident, back home, in Ligny-en-Barrois. It was alongside his wife, Astrid, that Laurent learned in La Presse that the author had consumed cocaine before getting behind the wheel. For him, It’s a hammer blow. And there, the only words I said to my wife, I saved a criminal on the road. Laurent does not regret his gesture. His wife supports him. Maybe he’s a traffic criminal because he didn’t have to do what he did. We don’t take drugs, We don’t drink while driving. But after, He saved him. And I say that’s very good because there is judgment. And that, it was the right thing. It was too easy, death for someone like that. So, this guy, he is alive, it’s very good, he is judged. And I think it’s wonderful, because death, It’s the escape from everything. Another aggravating circumstance, The reckless driver is a repeat offender. Before the accident, his license had already been suspended following driving under the influence of drugs. The law does not prevent a heavy goods vehicle driver, already condemned, continues to practice. One question remains. Did the truck driver’s boss know about his employee’s criminal record? To find out, we go to the company headquarters. On camera, hidden. Good morning. It’s not there for me. He won’t come there. He won’t come to the office, anyway. All right, ok. The boss is away. One of her colleagues does not wish to answer our questions. We record it without his knowledge. The boss, He didn’t know? How do you mean? Do you think a boss hired someone and then turned them down? Even for the employer? It’s still a problem, We’re not going to risk hiring someone who drugs us. In France, a clean criminal record is mandatory for nearly 400 professions, but not that of a truck driver. When they are hired, We don’t have a criminal record for gas. He has already had dealings with the police because of drugs. The driver had been working for the company on a fixed-term contract for only two months. You know, He was employed as a hotelier. After what they do at home, they had another story. We don’t have to go into their private lives either. The morning, you can’t make your guys blow into the balloon, make them take a time test to see if they are taking drugs. It’s complicated too. Drivers under the influence of drugs are involved in nearly a quarter of fatal accidents. Most of them are young drivers. So, awareness-raising operations are multiplying. In Quiberon, in Brittany, 900 students came from all over France. They are taking part in the largest simulation exercise ever held in our country. So we will follow, but it’s true that you have to look at the vehicle in front. Agathe and Anaïs, two engineering school students, will test a mask reproducing the state of drunkenness. You’re going to pass each other. Go ahead, Agathe. What’s going on in your mask Agathe? Actually, I can’t see my feet. Finally, I see my feet, but they are not the right distance away. And I see two balloons. How many grams are in your mask? There, I think there are at least 10 grams. Second test, Anaïs is going to try a suit that simulates the effects of a narcotic. In the panoply, a vibrating glove, glasses with reduced vision and headphones that disrupt the inner ear. In a few seconds, Anaïs is in a daze. Ah, I see. There, It’s even more double. I see. It’s going off in all directions. Ah, yeah. It’s moving, What. That’s great. It’s good Ah, yeah, That. Ah, yeah, It’s great. Ah, I am completely spent, there. Agathe now takes the wheel for a full-scale test. I’m seeing double, It’s horrible. Objective, avoid bollards that represent the side of the road. The blue cones, I see 4,000 cones. But in fact, It’s weird. There, we completely went off the road. But in fact, it’s that… This is normal. Good, there, Can I leave? Yes. It’s super violent. It was impossible for the student to avoid leaving the road. There, I didn’t go on the road. There, You went and ran over the cameraman. He is far away, there ? Yes, it’s not that far. You let me steer right, OK? OK, OK. Come on, we’re taking it slowly. There, you roll over it. We were heading straight for the cameraman. Oh yes, No, But it was much further away. No, but it’s not possible to drive like that. Clearly, No. Since a while ago, we seduced people. Are involved in more than half of fatal accidents. It must be said that the cocktail is explosive when combined with speeding. Another behavior in the line of fire of the gendarmes. This Friday evening, on the National 4, Some drivers do not hesitate to take any risks to get home as quickly as possible. This road is limited to 110 km/h. But in the broad straight lines, It’s tempting to step on the accelerator. SO, The police are on the alert. “Remember, safety first.” Sebastian, the captain of the brigade, decides to implement large-scale speed control. More than fifteen gendarmes are mobilized. With its twin radar, Philippe is posted on the edge of a particularly dangerous bend. We allow you to have the entire descent where there have been accidents recently. 147. After just a few minutes… The first speeding tickets are issued. The six motorcyclists on alert are tasked with intercepting the reckless drivers. Specially trained for high-speed driving, They catch up with road offenders in less than two minutes. So, sir, You were stopped at 150 km/h instead of 110. For young drivers, the speed is limited to 100 km/h. So this is a big speeding violation. With immediate retention of license. Oh yes, so there, It’s even more complicated. Because there, we are at an acceleration greater than 50 km/h. So, there, We will keep your driver’s license. On board this white car, Another young driver on a probationary license has just been caught going 154 km/h. Your license, there, you are still on probation Yes, until August 11 of this year. So that means that. 154. We feel, You are 43 km over the speed limit. So there, your license is being withheld. The gendarmes are not at the end of their surprise. By checking the young driver’s background, They will find out that he is already under a driving ban, that is, he is driving illegally. This gentleman has already had his driving licence suspended for speeding. And his license is not extended, We call it that. He should have waited for the prefecture, to more than one authorization, the way answers. For his speeding and driving without a license, Quentin, 21 years old, will be fined 300 euros and have their license suspended for an additional three months. I need my license, especially, to go to work and to go to school. YOU, we agree, you will do. I don’t know. I don’t know. The bicycle No, I don’t know. SO Come on, come on, come play. Delay. So that sucks. Quentin is unaware that his behavior is the cause of a quarter of fatal accidents. Speed, of course, on this type of road, we double track, we lose control, We have a lot of people on the axis. A car that loses control, which begins to spin out, It could cause a big pileup. Well, that’s good for me. You would have. To you too, Good luck for the future. Bye. Bye. Good, How does it feel here? Disgusted. Honestly disgusted. Bored. To death. So, it was the girl who took over the wheel. Yes, but she gets out of my face. What. Hello to during. Ah good Navy. For what Well, she definitely has crooked arms. you. It’s true that I like speed, I like the feeling. You tell him you’re driving too fast. Ah, well, yes, but he doesn’t care. He doesn’t understand. Eh, Quentin But what do you want? Press a little, that’s it, You’re already at 110. This evening, in less than 3 hours, 28 speeding offences were recorded by the police and 5 driving licences were revoked. The job is thankless, since we save lives, but we don’t know how many. NOW, we save lives, so it is indeed… A pride in doing a job where, every day, we save lives. In the Meuse, The efforts of the gendarmes finally paid off. In 10 years, The number of deaths on the department’s roads has been halved. But law enforcement remains on alert 24 hours a day, Because some drivers are not lacking in imagination when it comes to trying to circumvent the law. It’s 3 a.m. Pascal, The repairman, was woken up urgently. He was the one who intervened in the fatal accident that cost the lives of two women and their three children. Today, Another accident occurred between two vans. Pascal has little information. On site, The gendarmes are trying to secure the area. What did he type? He fell asleep, It’s dead dough. He hit the curb and debris flew into the other lane, which causes another accident on the other side. All right, ok. This delivery man apparently fell asleep at the wheel. His van crashed through the guardrail. The rail then hit another utility vehicle traveling in the opposite direction. To minimize the risk of further accidents, Pascal must evacuate the two vehicles very quickly. You went as fast as possible. So, It’s good, It’s going to be loaded. We’ll see if we have both of them. The delivery man is Serbian. Like him, Many drivers from Eastern countries use simple vans to transport goods. With a weight of less than 3.5 tonnes, they are not subject to the same safety rules as heavy goods vehicles, who must take a break every 4.5 hours. Ah, we’re going to play the radiators every night, Yes. These Serbian drivers, Romanians or Polish… Sometimes drives 10 or 12 hours without stopping, crossing Europe in extremely dangerous conditions and at risk of falling asleep at the wheel. It didn’t take much, a fraction of a second, And then it caused an accident, a second accident. He doesn’t have a single accident. While the site is being secured. It’s going very fast. The impact was so violent that the rail guard was thrown onto the side of the road. This shows that the vehicle could have completely crossed the road and hit the vehicle coming from the opposite street. Honestly, The driver was lucky. We could have had at least one bodily injury. This evening, A head-on collision was narrowly avoided. But this accident awakens in Pascal the painful memory of the tragedy which cost the lives of five people. As soon as we see that, we always think about the Méni-Lahornes accident, the terrible accident. We can only laugh about it, It’s just scrap metal. But hey, It sure could have been worse. It’s a good thing it was a small vehicle, The guy, when he fell asleep. With a seed, he would have gone through it. He would have passed through the ranks. This disaster scenario, That’s exactly what happened. Two and a half years ago, causing one of the worst accidents on the RN4. I think I’m going to get a 4, Bechette. In a few days, The appeal trial of the driver who killed Vincent’s two sisters and three nephews and nieces will be held. Vanessa, Kania, This is Vanessa. This is Mimose. That was the night before. The day of the accident, the two sisters and their children were on their way back, after a week of vacation spent with Vincent and Séverine. It was a memorable week. So. We were laughing all the time. Adorable children. There was something that was slipping, He covers that up. That was life, What. It was their last moment, What. It’s incredible. It’s incredible. And there, we can guess the car, There, before departure. She is there, the car. Just before departure. A week later, before the Nancy Court of Appeal, Vincent and his wife join their lawyer. The verdict against the truck driver who killed his family is due to be delivered today. He was driving under the influence of cocaine. At some point, punishment must be given and justice must be done. This is important. Effectively, It’s important to us. The reckless driver is not present today. Sentenced to 7 years in prison at first instance, he is incarcerated. The deliberations will last less than 10 minutes. For Vincent and his wife, This verdict marks the end of a wait of almost three years. The reckless driver was this time sentenced to ten years in prison, three more years. A sentence, despite everything, not severe enough for Vincent. But according to the law, A homicide caused by a car accident is in all cases unintentional. It was manslaughter and that is also very, very difficult for the families, It is to say that someone who voluntarily put himself in a situation in which he put others in danger, that is to say the situation which consists of consuming narcotics while driving, may result in involuntary manslaughter, not voluntary manslaughter. My family got life sentences. So it will never live up to our expectations. NOW, the repeat offense, be retained, so much the better. But 10 years, it will never be enough compared to what we are experiencing and what we have experienced. Every year, Nearly 1,000 people have died on the road following an accident involving a driver under the influence of drugs. Despite the relentless efforts of the police, The number of accidents on French roads has been on the rise again for the past three years. Good.

Chaque jour, des dizaines de vies basculent sur les routes françaises.
Ce documentaire immersif vous plonge sur les deux axes les plus dangereux de France : la RCEA et la RN4, surnommées “routes de la mort”.

À travers des interventions en temps réel de gendarmes, pompiers, dépanneurs et témoins, on découvre l’ampleur du fléau : chocs frontaux, excès de vitesse, alcool et stupéfiants, téléphone au volant, poids lourds en infraction. La caméra capte la brutalité des accidents et la détresse des familles endeuillées.

Derrière les statistiques, ce sont des vies brisées. Un jeune de 25 ans coincé dans sa voiture, un conducteur récidiviste sous cocaïne, des familles décimées. Les témoignages bouleversants d’un dépanneur marqué à vie, d’une mère qui a perdu son fils, ou d’un routier sauvé par miracle, donnent à ce film une force rare.

Un cri d’alerte pour la sécurité routière.
Un hommage aux secouristes qui interviennent 24h/24.
Un miroir de nos comportements au volant.

💖 Likez cette vidéo pour soutenir les pompiers et les gendarmes mobilisés sur nos routes.
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🗨️ Commentez : Que faudrait-il changer pour sauver des vies sur nos routes ?

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