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A mother has died after the jet ski she was riding with her partner collided with one being driven by their teenage twin daughters.
The 47-year-old woman died from head injuries a few hours after the jet ski crash with her 16-year-old daughters in France.
Her partner and daughters, from the southwest French city of Angoulême, were treated for minor injuries and shock in hospital, after the crash while they were riding in Arcachon Bay, off France’s Atlantic coast.
They were under the supervision of a qualified instructor – as is law if you don’t hold a boat licence in France.
Sammy Maysonnave, the winner of 2022’s French jet ski championship, when asked about the news, said he believes riders “need more training, perhaps a special licence.”
Deaths due to jet ski crashes remain rare in France but accidents have become more common, with emergency services carrying out 55 rescue missions on the Atlantic coast last year - a sizable increase from 34 in 2022.
Helmets are advised but not compulsory. A rule introduced this year requires riders to wear wetsuits at least 2mm thick to protect their body from internal injuries.
Mr Maysonnave described the rules as a “good start” but added that “the regulations should be stricter”.
Jet skiing had become the centre of debate in the area this summer after a French resort, Arcachon and Lège-Cap-Ferret, banned privately owned jet skis this summer, citing pollution, noise, and anti-social behaviour at the centre of the decision.
Tensions became high between jet skiers and beachgoers during the holiday season, reportedly even resulting in physical fights, with the resort now only allowing officially approved hire companies on the water to reduce the “nuisance factor”.
The ban has been mirrored in other places, such as Argelès-sur-Mer and Le Cannet in the Mediterranean.
Mr Maysonnave, who also chairs jet skiers’ association Arguin Jet, described the ban as “discriminatory”, adding: “We’re being deprived of a freedom, but it’s not over yet. We’re going to take legal action against it.
“There are sometimes accidents, as there are in cars, but is that a reason to make jet skis illegal? I don’t think so,” he added.
