a remote-controlled buoy being tested to help rescuers

A victim rescued in a few seconds, thanks to an aquatic drone. This is what the firefighters of Noirmoutier (Vendée) are experimenting with, Saturday August 20, who have just been equipped with this new tool. This is a first in France. “We take the drone, we throw it in the water and we go to recover the victim”, explains a firefighter. The machine is then piloted from the shore, a maneuver within reach of all firefighters, without training.

“It’s relatively simple. A child could do it. It’s like a remote-controlled boat in the end”, explains Sébastien Tableau, firefighter. The device can reach 14 km/h and go up to 500 meters offshore. Only constraint, the victim must be conscious to be able to cling to it. “If we can bring the person back to shore, perfect. But if there are too many rollers, rocks… We’ll leave the person offshore until the specialist team’s boat can pick them up”explains Lieutenant Michaël Capelle, head of the fire center of Noirmoutier-en-l’Île (Vendée).