a former road accident victim testifies in front of Landes high school students

« Don't be like me. » Four years ago, as he was leaving a drunken evening, Jauffrey Roche, aged 28 at the time, got on his motorbike. After a few kilometers, he lost control of the machine, left the road and hit an electric pole, which he hit in the head. Result: two weeks in a coma and a year and a half of rehabilitation to relearn how to walk, to speak, to live. This Tuesday, November 12, 2024, he came to testify in front of four classes from the Saubrigues vocational high school as part of the Mobility Forum organized by the Maremne Adour South Coast Community of Communes.

A few minutes before his speech, Cyrille Lefeuvre, chief of staff of the Landes prefecture, reminded the students present in the amphitheater of the road safety figures in the Landes. “There have already been 27 deaths (a 28^e No one has died since then, Editor's note) on the Landes roads since the start of the year. 27 lives taken. Including ten young people under the age of 25,” the state agent solemnly declared. “We are bad at this in the department,” he got carried away, before urging the young people present to listen attentively to Jauffrey’s testimony, “to avoid new tragedies.”

The raw reality

Attentive listening is rarely the prerogative of a high school audience. So, to capture the attention of his audience, Jauffrey broadcasts a short video retracing the consequences of his accident on his personal life and the stages of his rehabilitation. In the first images, we see the immediate repercussions of the event: the hospital bed, the stitches on the young man's skull… Images that are difficult to bear for some high school students, who look away.

“An accident is never the result of chance”

Four years later, the after-effects of the accident are still visible on Jauffrey's face. The 30-year-old approaches the audience and lifts his hair to show the scar across his forehead. “A bit like Harry Potter,” he jokes. A few minutes later, he takes a few steps in front of the pulpit to show the extent to which his approach remains disturbed by balance problems. “We can say that I have recovered 85% of my abilities,” he congratulates himself before taking on a serious expression and adding: “But believe me, the missing 15%… Those hurt the soul. heart. »

Jauffrey's message to the Saubrigues high school students can be summed up in a few words, which he repeats mechanically: “Be careful of yourself. » “When you go to party, organize yourself in advance,” he insists, “designate a “Sam,” and be serious. » Be serious, because an accident of this kind sweeps away the trajectory of an existence. After his, Jauffrey lost his girlfriend, saw some of his friends move away and had to give up for a while what was the essence of his life: surfing.

“Be careful”

However, the irrepressible desire to stand at the top of the waves does not leave him. “It was the ocean that saved me,” he says. I held on to the hope of surfing again. This is what motivated me, what helped me to fight, to get back up. » The Capbretonnais cites the words of Australian singer Sia as a mantra: “Never give up”. The strength of his determination is proportional to the peril he faced that evening. From this thought come these words: “Life is precious. Take care of yourself. »

Alongside Jauffrey, Alain Théobald, volunteer project manager with the prefecture, shakes the audience: “An accident is never the result of chance. » If there is no chance, there is nothing inevitable. “So, it’s up to you to make sure you never find yourself in Jauffrey’s place,” he says. According to this former gendarme, testimonies like this allow young people to understand more concretely what a road accident represents.

For Jauffrey Roche, who came to testify for the first time about this evening which changed his life forever, speaking to these young people is a kind of therapy: “All I can do is contribute to what there are no others like me. »