Fires in Gironde and Landes: animals, collateral victims of the fires

A doe hides behind charred tree trunks. She has a worried, haggard look. The photo was taken two days ago, in the south of the Gironde. She thinks she is safe, but, eaten away by the flames, the pines threaten to collapse. In their fight against the fire, firefighters saved human lives, but also animals. A deer returns to its territory, yet charred by the flames. The animal is completely disoriented, on hot ground.

“We have animals whose legs are burned, who have practically no legs left (…). The ground is hot on 80 cm times. We had to euthanize animals that were doing very well, but whose paws were so burned that nothing could be done.”reports Patrick Mengmember of the Animal Association protect. Among the most affected animals are red squirrels. The associations have collected about forty. They often lack food. For the moment, it is impossible to know how many animals perished in the fires.