A little over a week after the events, the public prosecutor of Angers provides an update on the investigation into the shooting accident which left two dead and several injured during the fireworks fired on July 14 in the evening at Cholet.
It is this Monday, July 25 that will take place the funeral of the two victims of the same family, a 7-year-old boy and his 24-year-old sister, who died during the fireworks display on July 14 in Cholet.
In the city, questions remain, many are surprised by the circumstances of this tragedy.
“I guess there is an organizational or security problem that has not been sufficiently respected” declares a Choletais crossed this Friday morning. But who are responsible? he wonders, the organizers or those who got too close to the shot. “Things like this shouldn’t happen” he believes.
“We ask ourselves questions” recognizes a woman from Cholet who, mother of a 7-year-old child, feels touched by this drama. “We would like to know who is at fault, she says. We will see the fireworks with the children, the family, it can happen to everyone.”
The investigation led by the public prosecutor of Angers, Eric Bouillard is progressing.
“We are still in a phase where we will try to fix things and put them back in place as they were when the accident occurred.” he declares.
Apart from the two deceased and one seriously injured, a dozen people reported to the investigators as having suffered sequelae and were heard. Fifteen others were also impacted.
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First thing: see how the rockets left the launch pad and in what direction. This is an important point for the investigation.
For this, the investigators study several videos of the drama.
“To date, we know that a fire occurred in the bottom of one of the boxes which were supposed to contain tubes intended to launch products” specifies Eric Bouillard.
Two experts, an engineer and a pyrotechnician, have been commissioned to work on this dossier for the coming months. They will try to answer several questions:
- What products have been projected?
- With what violence and in what direction?
- Where is the malfunction?
- What safety distance should be imposed between the launch pad and the public?
“The two deceased persons were approximately 45 meters from the launch pad when they were hit by the shots which malfunctioned, adds the prosecutor. The rule of a firework is that the pyrotechnician will determine himself the security perimeter that he considers to have to be respected according to the fires that he will use.
However, according to the first elements of the investigation, this zone was determined at 150 meters for the fireworks which were fired on July 14, 2022 in Cholet.
“There shouldn’t have been people in that 150m zone.” concludes Eric Bouillard.
But whose fault is it?
Searches were carried out at the pyrotechnician in question that evening and at the premises of Cholet Evénements, the organizer of this fireworks display.
“Were there institutions or people responsible for enforcing this security perimeter?” asks the prosecutor.
The other aspect that shocked the public is that the fireworks went through despite the drama.
“The artificer perceived a malfunction, according to prosecutor Bouillard. But he didn’t immediately understand the consequences and so he continued the fireworks. There is an area that will need to be lit.”
The investigation is therefore continuing and more precise answers will probably not arrive before the end of this year 2022.
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