It was around 11pm on Tuesday when a bus carrying 75 Portuguese tourists on the A 89 broke down due to a technical problem, at kilometer 138, near Blis-et-Born (Basilac-and-Auberoche municipality). In the emergency lane, the driver was going to try to fix the car but couldn’t. It is not possible to rent a rescue bus.
The gendarmes, coming from the Motorized Detachments (PMO) from La Bachellerie and Saint-Astier, were notified about 11:20 pm and went to the scene. Usually, one of their tasks is to evacuate people who are likely to be in danger as quickly as possible, but they cannot do so. So they had to find another solution.
As a result, they used police cars to transport tourists in small groups to the nearest service area, in Saint-Laurent-sur-Manoire (in Boulazac-Isle-Manoire), about ten kilometers from. It took several round trips and several hours, as police finished around 6 a.m. on Wednesday. An unusual process for them.
Tourists were able to warm up in the Manoire service area.
Stefan Klein Archives / “The Southwest”
Bus from Portugal
The Portuguese were sponsored by Vinci Autoroutes and were able to make use of small batches of biscuits and water. “The composition was almost perfect, we emphasize the communication aspect with Vinci. People were able to take advantage of the services of the Manoir area with restrooms and a cafe. They were warm. We try to pamper them. Anyway, this is not the kind of accident that happens every day.”
