“We are all torn to this point. But it's a shock. We are not going to risk our lives voluntarily only to, in the end, find ourselves judged like idiots…. in a court of law and destroy our lives and those of our families. » With Emmanuel Guilet, the boss of the Deauville-Trouville SNSM canoe, the 27 other volunteers from the sea rescue station have just become “on call”. In other words: until further notice, the Cross (Regional Operational Surveillance and Rescue Center), which coordinates rescue at sea, cannot call on them, even in the event of an emergency.
An absolutely exceptional decision coming from rescuers who have been involved on a daily basis, some for several decades and, sometimes, at the risk of their lives. But they cannot digest the appearance of one of their own, last week, before the Le Havre court. And the one year suspended prison sentence required against Philippe Capdeville. On January 14, 2021, the skipper of the SNSM boat in Ouistreham participated in the towing of the trawler Breiz, which ultimately sank with three sailors on board. The bodies of the three young fishermen, aged 19, 26 and 27, were not found until the next day.
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