Photographer René Robert died of indifference after falling on the street in Paris

A sudden illness caused Swiss photographer René Robert, 85, to collapse on the sidewalk, returning from a dinner with friends. It was the evening of January 19 and the artist, renowned for his shots related to the world of flamenco, was in Paris, in the city center. No one, for the very long 9 hours following his fall, stopped to help him and call the ambulance. René Robert lay on the ground on Rue de Turbigo, between Place de la Republique and Les Halles.

Just a homeless man, at the first light of dawn, he noticed that the elderly gentleman was completely still and has taken steps to get help. But the cold January air had already brought René Robert in a state of hypothermia. Rushed to Hôpital Cochin, the 85-year-old died after an hour.

“Killed by indifference.” So wrote colleague and friend Michel Mompontet, writer and journalist, in a lapidary tweet. Who added: “If there is anything this terrible death can teach us it is this: when a human being is lying on the pavement, no matter how fast you are, check that he is okay. Stop for a moment ».

On the newspaper Le Figaro, the French photographer Damien Le Guay dedicated a long editorial to the death of René Robert. “This old gentleman is dead. Aid has come too late. The cold had already run its course. His name was: René Robert. Whether he was famous or not, a photographer or a stranger, the story doesn’t change. Nobody wanted to see this man».

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