A difficult sequence. A grieving crowd gathered this Friday, November 24 at the collegiate church of Saint-Donat-sur-l’Herbasse, in Drôme, to attend the funeral of Thomas, 16 years old, killed during a village festival which took place in Crépol a few days ago. Responsible, with the teams ofProfessional Timeto cover this event for CNews, Pascal Praud was particularly touched by the images flashing on the screen.
“Matthieu Devèze is in front of the church with all these inhabitants of Romans-sur-Isère and Crépol. Matthieu, I don’t know if you can hear me. We are all shocked to see these images., Obviously, I imagine you are like us”, first announced the 59-year-old host before handing over the air to the journalist dispatched to the scene. Then, little by little, a heavy silence settles on the set of the show and, when it comes back on the air, Pascal Praud can’t hold back her tearssearching with difficulty for the words to resume the course of his broadcast: “Forgive usbut for me, it’s the first time that…”And to continue, with a tight throat: “We had other topics planned for this last half hour, but I think it’s quite complicated to talk about other things than what we currently see on the air…”
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“What to say ? What can I say but pray?”
The tragic death of a child is never an easy thing to talk about, even for a seasoned journalist like Pascal Praud. About the barbarity which put an end to the life of young Thomas, a final year student and on whom life smiled, the one who is father of four daughtersnamed Morgane, Tiphaine, Faustine and Lou-Élise, therefore had difficulty bouncing back: “What to say ? What to say but pray?” he asked himself. And to join in the pain of the victim’s loved ones: “All these people who are in tears, like you undoubtedly while watching these images and like us on this set because there is nothing to say except to cry and pray… What dignity, what sadness! Poor parents.”
Article written in collaboration with 6Medias
Photo credits: Screenshot CNews