The Saint-Etienne railway community is in mourning after the suicide of Bruno Rejony on New Year's Eve. He was a driver involved in the CGT union, which he represented for many years.
On Tuesday evening, a few hours before Christmas Eve, a TGV driver committed suicide by jumping from the driver's seat of his moving train, an act that shocked the railway community, reports Le Progrès.
Considerable delays
The driver's suicide had serious consequences for the rail network, causing considerable delays on the South-East high-speed line, disrupting the journeys of thousands of passengers heading to their families for the end-of-year holidays.
This TGV driver, originally from Saint-Etienne and whose face was well known in the region, was in reality a person in distress, which was reported by the press a few hours after his death.
Bruno Rejony, aged 52 years old, was indeed a “well-known figure of the Loire”, according to Le Progrès, a local newspaper with which he was frequently in contact.
He was an active member of the CGT railway workers' union section and a regular contact in the context of his professional commitment.
This long-standing employee joined the SNCF in 1997, and over the years, he distinguished himself through his role as a local staff representative, taking to heart the concerns of the railway workers he represented.
Poignant testimonies
On his Facebook profile, poignant testimonies were found, in which Bruno Rejony had opened up about his personal difficulties. On December 13, he shared a message in which he spoke of “the absence of someone he misses”, accompanied by a broken heart.
This publication revealed the emotional distress of the man, but also a certain isolation that seems to have been present in the last weeks of his life.
The railway community, deeply affected by the disappearance of one of their own, expressed its shock and emotion in the face of this tragedy. In response to this loss, the regional management of the SNCF took measures to support its agents, confirming the opening of a psychological unit to provide them with the necessary help in these difficult times.