It’s a national experiment carried out in ten departments, including Morbihan. This Friday, June 26, 2020, the Lorient, Vannes and Hennebont fire and rescue centers each received four pedestrian cameras. This equipment, as big as a mobile phone, is similar to what already exists in the police and the gendarmerie. It must make it possible to fight against the aggressions of which the fire soldiers are victims.
In Morbihan, the increase is indeed exponential. Verbal as well as physical, in rural areas as well as in urban areas, attacks have multiplied over the past three years. “In 2018, there were 16 convictions, an increase of 21% compared to the previous year”, thus notes Gilles Dufeigneux, president of the board of directors of the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service of Morbihan (Sdis 56). In 2019, this figure increased to 34.
“The risk of aggression, a daily subject”
“And in 2020, despite three months of confinement, we are already at 21”, laments Lieutenant Jean-Marc Pedron, head of center in Carnac and departmental referent for this new device. The last one dates back to the beginning of March, in Ménéac, with the care of an alcoholic driver who got carried away and kicked. “The risk of aggression, for us, is a daily subject”, lets go a firefighter.
For firefighters, these cameras are worn on a voluntary basis. Their use, limited only to situations of aggression, is supervised. Thus, as far as possible, the person filmed must be warned; medical gestures are not filmed; the images, encrypted and stored on a secure Sdis server, are destroyed after six months.
Conclusions in a year
In addition, “They may not be used in disciplinary proceedings against a firefighter”, wants to reassure Gilles Dufeigneux. Their exploitation will be reserved for legal proceedings only against the perpetrators of incivility or violence against them.
For the rest, “There is no specific doctrine, we will work for a year and then we will have to submit our conclusions”, explains Lieutenant Pedron to his colleagues gathered for the occasion at the Hennebont barracks.
The Breton department will not wipe the plasters, other departments having started the experiment. And the first results are quite promising. “In the Rhône, which started in January, colleagues observed a drop in aggression of around 60%”, rejoices Lieutenant Pedron.
“It is not the silver bullet, recognizes Lieutenant-Colonel Gildas Lopéré, commander of the operational staff of Morbihan. But it is a good deterrent. “
– .
