On Sunday evening, firefighters from Maine-et-Loire (49) were attacked whilst responding to an incident to rescue two people who had been hit by a car during a brawl in Vivy, a small village of 2,500 inhabitants near Saumur.
"Last night [...], a casualty evacuation vehicle (VSAV) was damaged by the relatives of those involved in the accident" the SDIS 49 headquarters states in a press release. It adds, "The verbal abuse and the prevailing tension prompted the emergency services (the fire brigade and the medical team, Ed.) "to withdraw to a safe location so that the various victims can be looked after under the safest possible conditions".
A complaint has been lodged
I condemn in the strongest possible terms this act of vandalism and the abuse directed at the firefighters, who risk their lives every day to protect the lives of the department’s residents.
Patrice Brault, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Maine-et-Loire Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS)
There were no injuries amongst the firefighters, but they are "deeply shocked by the outpouring of verbal and physical abuse". A complaint was lodged immediately after the incident.