Old Codgers Of The Week (16)

It all began innocently enough when an unnamed 77-year-old man cycled off from his home in Saint-Julien-des-Points, Lozère, to nearby La Grand-Combe in the Gard department of France to get some shopping. A familiar enough route but on his way home somehow missed the bend on the RN106, the winding road which follows the border between the two regions.

Disaster struck as his bicycle plunged down a steep 40-metre slope taking him with him and depositing him in the Gardon riverbed. Trapped in the steep ravine, he called out for help whenever he heard the sound of a passing vehicle, but for three days no one came to his assistance. He tried to climb up the ravine several times, only to fall back into the water.

Fortunately, his shopping which consisted of some food and a few bottles of vin rouge had survived intact and he was able to feed himself, the wine no doubt helping to stave off the cold damp nights on the Cévennes mountains.

On the third day a group of workers from the Interdepartmental Directorate of Roads heard faint cries from below. Investigating, they spotted a twisted bicycle and the frail silhouette of a man waving from the ravine. Emergency services were immediately called, and firefighters, assisted by a civil security helicopter, airlifted the exhausted man to Alès Hospital for treatment.

Found to be suffering from little more than a few minor injuries and mild hypothermia, the doughty pensioner was described by Dr. Laurent Savath, chief medical officer of the Hérault fire brigade as a “miracle. In the damp and cold…he proved remarkably resilient”.