2024-02-03 00:30:00
One year ago on February 8, a bus was deliberately driven into a daycare in Laval, killing two toddlers. As this sad anniversary approaches, while we still know nothing about the suspect’s motivations, parents and caregivers have agreed to share their memories of this day as chaotic as it is tragic.
Despite the scale of the tragedy and the age of the little victims, the first responders deployed to the site of the daycare hit by a bus last year today remember an almost perfect synergy between the teams, demonstrating how point it is possible to have a “well-oiled machine” in the face of such a crisis.
“Teamwork and collaboration were really there,” says Félix Larivière, one of the first paramedics to set foot on the crime scene. Everyone did their job perfectly.”
Félix Larivière and Isabelle Jutras, paramedics at Urgences-santé. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
The rescuers met by The newspaper almost a year after the tragedy all agree: through the chaos, blind trust reigned between them.
Among the key roles that day, we included that of an operations manager for the Laval Fire Safety Service (SSIL), who controlled a command post.
conductor
Among other things, he ensured that the strategies used were safe, and assigned the workers to the necessary locations.
“Everything went well because there was a conductor,” said SSIL operations lieutenant Patrick Gauthier, who participated in the rescue.
Patrick Gauthier, operations lieutenant. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
The Laval firefighters also wanted to meet The newspaper as a group, in their headquarters, in order to demonstrate the collective effort made on February 8, while each task could change the situation.
Sébastien Courville, head of operations, Patrick Gauthier, lieutenant of operations, David-Alexandre Clapin, firefighter, and Vincent Mercier, head of the intervention division at the Laval Fire Safety Service. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
For example, while David-Alexandre Clapin, a firefighter, navigated through the debris to save children under the bus driven by the suspect, three of his colleagues secured the vehicle to prevent it from falling on top of him.
David-Alexandre Clapin, firefighter. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
“With our eyes closed, we don’t ask ourselves any questions,” summarizes Mr. Clapin.
“That’s what makes us strong, emergency responders, is that we are able to distribute the work,” argues Vincent Mercier, head of the intervention division at SSIL.
The latter was responsible in the “hot zone”, the very location of the collision. One of his priorities was to monitor the structure of the daycare. He also synchronized the work of his troops with that of the police.
Vincent Mercier, head of intervention division. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
“Shut up, we’re going to win!”
At the same time, despite the horror and pain felt, the first responders still tried to distract the children.
Firefighters turned bus evacuation into a game, while paramedics gave a guided tour of the ambulances to the little victims they had to transport and whose condition permitted it.
“At one point, I was trying to make a boy laugh by telling him that we were racing and that we were going to overtake the other cars,” recalls Isabelle Jutras, a paramedic deployed to the scene of the tragedy. I said: “Shut up, we’re going to win!”
All at the barracks
As is always the case when young victims are involved, many were greatly affected mentally by the tragedy.
Félix Larivière, who has only been working at Urgences-santé for a few years, experienced post-traumatic shock after the event and had to call on the services offered by the organization.
“We took the time to sort it all out, to talk about it, and it did a lot of good,” admitted Isabelle Jutras.
Isabelle Jutras and Félix Larivière, paramedics at Urgences-santé. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
It should be noted that police officers, paramedics, firefighters and 911 dispatchers joined a crisis unit in a barracks shortly after the tragedy.
“At the beginning, there were no speakers [d’aide] necessarily, just as a team, we started talking, those who wanted to talk. Sometimes, changing the subject helps you relax,” underlines fire soldier Patrick Gauthier.
“It was too high, the adrenaline level,” adds his colleague Sébastien Courville, head of operations. I’ve never seen that.”
Sébastien Courville, operations manager, and David-Alexandre Clapin, firefighter. Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
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