ACCIDENT-A7 - While five children died in an accident, on Monday evening, on the A7 motorway in the Drôme, the lawyer of the driver target Renault, the brand of the vehicle, after the first findings of the investigation.

Summary the origin of The accident victims from the same family The vehicle, a Scénic not suitable ?

[updated July 23, 2020 9: 59] The first elements of the investigation have delivered their verdict, three days after the terrible road accident which claimed the lives of five children, on the A7 motorway at the level of Albon, in the Drôme. The experts have concluded that the turbo of the vehicle was defective, which caused over-revving of the engine and its burning. "The driver was in the quasi-impossibility to stop the engine, as the failure neutralizes all systems brake assist, where a feeling of a brake that doesn't work, alluded to by the driver before he lost consciousness," said Wednesday, Alex Perrin, the prosecutor of Valencia.

In this context, the lawyer of the family which are all from the passengers has prompted Renault, the brand of the vehicle, "answer for its actions and its responsibilities". "The problem is technical, there is no human failing, it is a runaway engine due to a problem with the turbo that triggered the fire", had found master Nicolas Cellupica, interviewed by Franceinfo. Another topic, the technical control, which should have been done last may, but that cannot be held against the owner of the vehicle since the State has granted an extension of time following the containment. For the lawyer, in all ways, "even if the control technique was not exceeded, no one would have seen this failure on this piece, because this is not a play that is reviewed during technical control".

What is known about the circumstances of the accident

The accident on that stretch of highway at the level of Albon, in the north of the Drôme region, occurred in the early evening on Monday 20 July 2020. Nine people were aboard the vehicle : six children, between 3 and 14 years old, and three adults. The weather, calm Monday evening, does not seem to have been involved in the accident, which took place in the south to the north of the A7 motorway. According to the story of Alex Perrin, the prosecutor of the Republic of Valencia, the vehicle was "clearly" caught fire, before the driver lost control and it went "over". According to the prefect of the Drôme, on the surveillance cameras, "we see the smoke, the vehicle starts taking fire. Obviously the driver has sought to put on the tape emergency stop. But the brakes have not worked", explained Hugues Moutouh on Franceinfo.

The accident victims are all from the same family

The accident occurred on Monday evening on the A7 motorway, therefore, has caused the death of five children, aged 3 to 14 years. In total, nine people were present in the vehicle. The other four, one child and three adults are injured and three of them, including the child, are in a state of absolute emergency. It is a native family of Vénissieux, in the suburbs of Lyon. The prosecutor of Valencia Alex Perrin reported that the driver, still alive, was the father of the family. He was travelling with his four children, their mother, and a sister-in-law with two children.

The vehicle, a Renault Scénic to only seven places Date Of Update: 23 July 2020, 05:57