Valéry Bélisle, 22, was involved in a traffic accident Tuesday morning near Rivière au Bouleau, on Route 138. But the worst happened when he realized he didn’t have a cellular network to call emergency services.
” It’s really scary when you find yourself on the side of the road alone, injured, trying to call 911 and no tank passing by. “
The Rivière-Saint-Jean resident left his home around 5:30 am Tuesday morning in the direction of Sept-Îles. The prison intervention technique student will go there for the start of an internship.
He still doesn’t know what happened to the steering wheel. Am I weak, am I asleep? I do not know. But when I opened my eyes it was too late to do anythingrecalls Valéry.
His car crashed into a ditch between Route 138 and the beach. I felt, I saw, I heard the breaking of metal, the breaking of windows. When the tank started to roll, I felt it toosaid the maiden.
Valéry Bélisle escaped with a broken vertebra, but he knew he was lucky.
” I must have tried to call 911 ten times. “
When her car crashed on the beach, the girl realized that, miraculously, her cell phone was still working. However, the network is not there.
The Rivière au Bouleau is located approximately halfway between Sept-Îles and Rivière-Saint-Jean. However, cellular coverage is virtually nonexistent from the Moisie River to Kegaska.
Only the villages of Longue-Pointe-de-Mingan and Natashquan as well as the Havre-Saint-Pierre sector offer the cellular network. There are also some areas identified with wi-fi networks in the villages of Minganie, but on the road, motorists are left with their own devices.
How my tank was placed, it was impossible for anyone to see me from above. […] I knew I had to get out of there. I have no choice, he insisted. He is also starting to feel pain in his back.
Valéry Bélisle was able to get out of his car by slamming the door with his feet.
He twice climbed the rock embankment toward Route 138. After a nearly 45 -minute wait, a motorist stopped to help him.
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This is not the first time there has been such a situation. For nearly 10 years, the prefect of the MRC de la Minganie, Luc Noël, has denounced the lack of cellular coverage in the territory.
It’s annoying because we repeat the ad nauseam to our political representatives. […] The government doesn’t seem to listen to ushe admits.
He regrets the accident that happened to Ms. Bélisle, while acknowledging that his situation is not unique. The entire security of an entire population depends of the cellular network, recalls Luc Noël.
In 2020, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) introduced the Broadband Fund, which aims to bridge the digital divide in the country. In the first five years, the Fund is expected to pay up to $ 750 million in projects.
A request for funding to deploy the cellular network in Minganie was made in 2020, Luc Noël said. The region is still awaiting a response from CRTC.
” [Les politiciens] play with the life of the world. They endanger the world by leaving road networks like this. “
The file is also one of the Federation of Quebec Municipalities (FQM) priorities due to the provincial elections in the fall. It requires that high-quality cellular coverage be deployed throughout Quebec.
Source: Radio-Canada
