A little girl died after being hit by a vehicle while out cycling in La Rochelle on 5 June. The octogenarian driver, who hit the group of children, told investigators that she felt unwell at the time of the accident, according to the public prosecutor’s office

“She was questioned last Friday after the doctors had given a favourable opinion. She said she had felt unwell and had not seen the cyclists,” said Arnaud Laraize, the public prosecutor in La Rochelle on Tuesday, confirming a report in the Sud Ouest newspaper.

Driver still in hospital

The 83-year-old driver is still in hospital. She has had a pacemaker fitted and tests are under way to assess her state of health before the accident, added the public prosecutor.

The accident took place at around 10 am on 5 June on a two-way street near the town centre with a 30 km/h speed limit. The children were on their way to an orienteering course in a public park as part of a day-care centre.

The group of children was hit “in a head-on collision” by a yellow Twingo “coming the wrong way” after having “suddenly swerved to the left, for no apparent reason”, according to the public prosecutor. A 10-year-old girl in the group of twelve children died a few days after the accident.