The figures, regularly updated, are chilling. The fire which has affected the south of the Gironde and the Landes since Tuesday afternoon, has already burned 7,400 ha, according to a last report drawn up Ronan Léaustic, sub-prefect of Arcachon, this Friday morning. And the firefighters will once again face the flames in the heat wave, since temperatures of up to 40 ° C locally are expected in the south-west of France. “The day is likely to be complicated,” commented Ronan Léaustic.
For the time being, 10,000 people have been evacuated since the start of the disaster and 17 homes have been destroyed, but none in the last 24 hours, specifies France Bleu. The diversions, in progress on the A63, remained in force overnight from Thursday to Friday, said Vinci Autoroutes.
During the night, “there was no significant progress”, commented Ronan Léaustic, sub-prefect of Arcachon, during a press briefing this Friday morning. “There is no worsening of the situation near the highway and Belin-Béliet,” he continued.
Thursday, the flames had continued to progress on the side of the Gironde, with 600 ha covered. The firefighters worked to prevent the advance of the flames towards the north of the department as well as in the municipalities of Belin-Béliet and Saint-Magne, they said. This Friday, “the forces will be concentrated on the hot spots, to the north and the south of the disaster”, detailed Éric Brocardi, spokesperson for the National Federation of Firefighters of France, on BFMTV.
More progress in the Landes
A note of hope, however: for the second consecutive night, the fire did not progress in the Landes. In addition, the more than 1,000 firefighters already mobilized will be helped by 361 European firefighters. 65 Germans have already arrived this Thursday with 24 vehicles, and the Romanians are expected on the ground this Friday morning. Others, from Poland or Austria will arrive in the next few hours. “It’s a reinforcement that was needed,” explained one of the firefighters, this Friday morning, during a press briefing.
A European solidarity for which Emmanuel Macron said he was grateful, this Thursday. He also announced that Italian Canadairs were on their way and two, from Greece, arrived Thursday evening.
The Gironde has already been affected by historic fires in July. Since the beginning of the year, more than 40,000 ha have already burned in France. A figure that even climbs to 50,000 ha according to European satellite data. That is more than three times the annual average of the last ten years in the country.