the essential
Broke on a pedestrian crossing while returning home by bicycle, Odile Jourdane, a figure in the Toulouse community, is fighting for her life after being plunged into an artificial coma.
“The doctors had plunged our mother into an artificial coma, but they stopped the treatments. She did not regain consciousness,” Jean-Pierre, one of Odile Jourdane’s five children, says feverishly on the line. This resident of the Bellefontaine district in Toulouse, a key figure in the Mirail community, is currently between life and death. “The caregivers remain cautious, but what they tell us is not encouraging. They are quite pessimistic about his chances of survival,” confides his son.
On Wednesday November 20, around 8 p.m., his mother, aged 74, was hit by a car on a pedestrian crossing. The accident took place on avenue de Reynerie, between two roundabouts, a few meters from the Grand M media library, rue Raymond-Lizop. On a lane limited to 30 km/h, the vehicle violently knocked down Odile, who was returning to her home on her bicycle. Shortly after, the passenger and the driver, a minor, were arrested by the national police.
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Quickly rescued by firefighters, the victim, suffering from serious head trauma, was rushed to Purpan hospital. “She had just finished an educational support course. For several years, she had been offering evening lessons directly in families to young people in difficulty,” explains Jean-Pierre. Odile Jourdane notably contributed to the creation of the association “Un Sourire d’Enfant”, which offers educational assistance, and “Bel Arc-en-ciel”, a movement for women in the Mirail sector. A practicing Catholic, she was also active in intercultural dialogue between Christians and Muslims. The news of the tragedy has shocked the entire sector, but for many it is not surprising due to its seriousness. Like Louis, 86, living on the 3rd floor of the Clairfontaine residence, which overlooks Avenue de Reynerie: “After dark, in addition to young people on scooters doing anything, some motorists drive at full speed” , says the retiree who has lived in Mirail for 50 years.
“Like a Formula 1 circuit”
For the association for the defense of cyclists “Two feet two wheels”, we must raise the level of safety for pedestrians and those who ride bicycles on this particularly busy artery. For Jean-François Lacoste, one of the members of the cyclists’ defense collective, Avenue de Reynerie is highly accident-prone and sometimes evokes a Formula 1 circuit at night. “In the first place, it is the driver’s fault, but the design of the road does not encourage people to slow down either. Avenue de Reynerie, long and straight, has roundabouts which do not effectively slow down speed. , unlike those in city centers.”
According to him, to reduce the risk of collisions, the roadway should above all be reduced. “We could install new, more efficient speed bumps and lane narrowing, because the wider it is, the more drivers tend to accelerate. A global overhaul of the avenue is necessary, because its dangers extend over its entire length. length,” he explains. About thirty years ago, in almost the same place, two twin sisters lost their lives, struck down by a driver. But, generally speaking, this type of accident is quite rare in urban areas.
