“The state should listen to us“. On France’s Mediterranean coast, elected officials, emergency service managers and regional parks are concerned “deficiency» Air resources available to fight fires when fires affect other areas.
During a visit to Gironde on Wednesday (July 20), President Emmanuel Macron pledged to buy more planes to fight the fires, where two mega fires have destroyed nearly 21,000 hectares of forest. “The 22 airplanes with which the Civil Defense is armed were sufficient in recent years. (…) Do we need more? The answer is yes“, he judged.
With global warming, fires should indeed increase in areas where they already occur, such as in the Southeast, but before that they also affect northern areas.immunizedScientists of the National Research Institute of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Inrae) warned against these natural disasters at the end of June.
Insufficient total number
“The national context, which forces the movement of air resources outside the area of normal operation, compromises the coverage of Mediterranean agencies.Var Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS 83) chairman Dominic Lyne warned this week. This department, both heavily wooded and very touristy, was hit by the biggest summer fire in France in 2021. More than 6,000 hectares had burned inside the seaside resort of Saint-Tropez.
“The strategy of rapid and massive attack on incipient fires (…), which has proven its worth for 30 years by reducing burned areas, is greatly degraded.“, he said. “The total number of Canadair (water bombers) for the area is insufficientAlso judging this week was Jean Mangion, president of the Alpil Park and Nature Parks network in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region.
“Pilots must be recruited today, Canadair orders must be fulfilled today. (…) All this takes time and was not planned. Tomorrow may be too lateHe warns that a few days after the fire, which covered 1,600 hectares of Provençal mountain range Montagniet.
On paper, France has 19 water bombers stationed at Nîmes-Garonne (Garde); 12 Canadairs can carry 6,000 liters of water each and seven Dash 10,000 liter jets (eighth expected in 2023, editor’s note) that are refueled. ground in one of the 22”.pelicandromesintended for this purpose in France.
old planes
The system is completed by three Beechcraft reconnaissance aircraft and helicopters, including two heavy water bombers (4,000 liters of water). France has also acquired two additional Canadairs for 2025 as part of a bundled European order. Paca County President Renaud Muselier said Thursday that the region is willing to fund a third device. But he is waiting for a green light from the State to issue the only authorized order. “They don’t want to, I don’t understand whyHe regrets AFP.
Renault Muselier explains that he also wants to finance a new “pilicandrom» in Hyeres (Var) and also wait for the permission of the state. “We wanted to make economies of scale. (…) The reality today is that Canadairs are old planes, with only 6 out of 12 in service due to maintenance or spare parts.“, he says about the French Air Force.
As a result, some of the departments most exposed to fires have to finance the rental of air assets themselves each year to complete the national system, as for example in Var, where SDIS 83 invests more than 1.5 million euros per year for four water. bomber helicopters. “The state should help us financially– asks Dominique Lehn, who met with Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin to express his concern. He calls “collective consciousness“.
Source: Le Figaro
