Sad thing is Nero - if you read posts elsewhere - some people might take the German approach as being jobsworth and overly intrusive - you can't win. At the end of the day we are all primarily responsible for managing the risks in our lives. Forget gas, camping overnight in a service area or aire carries risk because of your isolation, insecurity of van, lack of any patrolling of access to and from the area, proximity to the main road. It isnt a campsite and has none of the protection or security you would hope to enjoy there.
There are bad people in the world who prey on vulnerable people wherever they may be. So it is for us all to protect our interests.
I dont park up over night on aires or service areas prefering to get 2 - 3 hours sleep during daylight hours when is it manifestly safer.
I know it is not for eveyone but if folk are firghtened by these horror stories then they need to plan to avoid being in that situation.
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
At the end of the day regardless of how tired you are, you do need to find a site to stop for the night. All the gasing stories you hear are from service areas regarding motor homes and caravans, I suppose it could happen on a site but the chances are that much slimmer.
I am guilty of sleeping in the car at services when driving to and from UK to Italy but so far have been lucky.
We've just returned from a two week holiday, where we met two couples in motorhomes, who had been told by someone on site that they had met someone else, who'd met someone else, who had a friend who knew someone, who knew someone else who had been gassed. As a result they'd given up their decision to have six weeks away, and were returning to England after one week - so these stories do put people off!
We've stayed on Aires for many years - generally because we arrive in France in the early hours of the morning and no sites are open (and this is through choice because we live in the North and start our holiday after finishing work on a Friday so our preferred ferry choice is around midnight - yes we could alter our plans, but we're quite prepared to 'take the risk'.) We're old established travellers, but it is a shame if these sorts of stories put people off travelling through France.
There has been a posting here, I think from someone called HippyChick and she stated that it had actually happened to her and outlined the consequences. If it was actually a gassing then surely someone, somewhere, should be able to find out what they are using. I did read another thread once where an anaesthetist stated that it just wasn't possible to fill a whole van with gas (due to the nature of gases which knock people out) or that it would cost so much to obtain the gas that there would be no financial return from even a small bank robbery. It did strike me, too, that if you had knock out gas, then why not use it on an HGV driver, with a cargo worth many hundreds of thousands of pounds, which you could then happily download into your own HGV and run for it? Surely a much better return for your money!!
> then why not use it on an HGV driver, with a cargo worth many hundreds of thousands of pounds, which you could then happily download into your own HGV and run for it <
There is indeed loads of theft of HGV cargo and even the whole truck. Don't know about the use of gas.
The truck driver often sleeps in his cabin, while they break into the trailer.
According to HGV drivers, France is one of the worse countries.
Yesterday there was a proposal of e member of the European Parliament on the news: 1000 guarded truck parkings in Europe along the major truck routes.
Post last edited on 15/09/2005 12:57:53
------------- WL
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
Just found this report. It was from the 'Sunday Sun' newspaper (never heard of that one)
'One North-based lorry driver who did not want to be identified told the Sunday Sun how he has already fallen victim to the crime. He said: "It happened near Northampton about three weeks ago. I'd been quite tired so I just decided to pull over and catch a few hours.
"I can remember stopping the truck and getting myself comfortable. It must have been about 1am. Next thing I remember was waking up. It was daylight and when I looked at my watch it was after 9am.
"I remember thinking it was strange that I'd slept so long but I thought I may have been coming down with flu or something because my head was pounding.
"I got out for some fresh air and when I walked round the back of the trailer I realised I'd been got. I couldn't figure out how I hadn't heard anything.
"It wasn't until I got speaking to some other lads that I found out this was the latest thing. I don't know for definite, but I can only assume I'd been sedated in this way. It's quite frightening really."
A spokesman from Northumbria Police said. "Our whole force has been told about it and will be keeping an eye on the situation. "We would urge all lorry drivers to be extra vigilant."
I didn't know Northampton was in Northumbria.
It was incidently on the webpage of a company selling Gas Attack Alarms for vehicles.
Quote: Originally posted by wlee on 15/09/2005
> then why not use it on an HGV driver, with a cargo worth many hundreds of thousands of pounds, which you could then happily download into your own HGV and run for it <
There is indeed loads of theft of HGV cargo and even the
Yesterday there was a proposal of e member of the European Parliament on the news: 1000 guarded truck parkings in Europe along the major truck routes.
Post last edited on 15/09/2005 12:57:53
ASF (Autoroutes Sud de France) already have gated Aires with CCTV surveilance around Lyon. They are chargeable though.
I was travelling up the A26 to Calais yesterday and stopped briefly at the "Aire du Zutkerque" the last unstaffed Aire before Calais. There were 3 British caravans there, curtains drawn, evidently with occupants sleeping inside before catching their ferry. If I was a criminal these caravans would have been a sitting target, and there were in fact some dodgy looking people hanging around the Aire. I did see a Gendarmerie sign at a different aire further south saying that if you do sleep for the night at an Aire, to stop at a staffed Aire and to make sure you are within sight of the service station.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: gased in motorhome
