The consequences of global warming are already being felt in mainland France on the fire front. In this month of June, when summer has not started, the fires are multiplying. On June 12, fifty hectares of maquis were engulfed by fire in the Pyrénées-Orientales and several outbreaks broke out near Nîmes (Gard). The next day, a tree-lined campsite in Grau-du-Roi was ravaged by flames.
Between early and severe drought episodes and strong summer heat waves, the areas usually affected by vegetation fires – the Aquitaine and Mediterranean basins – are facing more intense and widespread infernos. Regions further north, hitherto spared by the flames, are now affected. The Ministry of Ecological Transition lists the new exposed areas: Pays de la Loire, Centre-Val de Loire, Brittany and even Hauts-de-France.
But in reality, the whole of France is affected. “It is now in the context of climate change, and on a national scale, that the problem of wildfires must be considered”, warns the National Observatory of the Effects of Global Warming (Onerc) in a report published in March. Faced with this new threat, are the French emergency services ready and sufficiently armed?
Adapting to “quick changes” induced by global warming has been taken into account for several years by Civil Security, assures franceinfo Commander Alexandre Jouassard, spokesperson for the Directorate General of Civil Security and Crisis Management (DGSCGC). A reflection aiming “the horizon 2030-2050″ led to this conclusion: “Our air and ground forces must be distributed over the national territory.”
Three new Pélicandromes, sites that can accommodate water bomber planes, were thus opened in 2020, far from the Côte d’Azur or the Atlantic: in Angers (Maine-et-Loire), Châteauroux (Indre) and Méaulte (Somme). In the same movement, another was opened in Epinal (Vosges) and that of Saint-Etienne (Loire) has just received its certification.
In the northernmost region of France, “the awareness dates from 2019”, tells franceinfo the colonel of the firefighters Olivier Desquiens, deputy to the chief of staff of the northern defense and security zone (which brings together the five departments of Hauts-de-France). That year, 3,000 hectares of crops went up in smoke in the area, in the context of an exceptional summer heat wave. In September, the decision was taken to set up a “zonal response”. Albert-Picardie airport, in Méaulte, is one of them. It occupies a “central position”, explains Colonel Olivier Desquiens. Thus, a device that fills up with water on this site “can interact with any construction site in the North zone in a maximum of 30 minutes”he points out.
Specific training for firefighters in forest fires is also being intensified. These professionals are trained to fight flames, but there are important differences between a house fire and a forest fire. Eventually, what was until now more of a specialty of firefighters in the south of France must become the norm for the whole country. “Sdis [Services départementaux d’incendie et de secours] realize a deficiency in the rate of staff training”slips to franceinfo François Faucon, from the Departmental Directorate of Territories in Indre-et-Loire. “Sdis target 50% or even 100% of trained personnel”adds this forest fire specialist, illustrating: “Le Cher is hosting five sessions this year.”
The purpose of these formations is twofold, explains Alexandre Jouassard. “The actors on site will be trained, will therefore have an habituation and an ability to perform the right gestures” and “them columns descending from the north to lend a hand to their colleagues in the south of France” are fully operational. Indeed, when a violent fire requires the mobilization of a large number of firefighters, as in 2021 near Gonfaron (Var), troops must be sent to relieve local teams and ensure routine firefighter interventions (in addition to fires ), but also support firefighters struggling with forest or vegetation fires.
Especially since the sending of reinforcements to the South, already observed in recent years, should increase. Julien Ruffault, fire and climate change specialist at the Mediterranean Forest Research Unit (URFM), underlines “a difference between the Mediterranean areas and the rest of France on climate forecasts”. The trend observed in the Mediterranean areas will certainly increase: fires are likely to be more frequent and more intense.
In Lhe rest of France, the trend is there, but less strong, and with greater uncertainty, especially on the scale and frequency of fires. “National and regional scale simulations are complex because they are based on statistical relationships between weather conditions and observed fires.warns the expert. In areas where there are no fires yet, we cannot yet establish these statistical relationships.”
If the uncertainty is great for the zones further north, vigilance is real. As proof: the acquisition of equipment. The Sdis de l’Indre has thus purchased, in 2021, four tank trucks to fight against forest fires. At 250,000 euros per unit, the investment is “important”comments François Faucon, specifying that even if these machines come “renew an aging equipment fleet”, “the last fires in the West have changed things a bit”. The Ddynamic is similar in the North defense zone. In 2021, the five Sdis in this sector bought nine tanker trucks to fight forest fires, figures Colonel Olivier Desquiens. The firefighter also mentions “phave a lot of small equipment”as well as the adaptation of existing machines, with for example the possibility of attaching a fire hose to the front of the vehicle.
In the Sarthe, after the fires of 2019, the decision was made to install cameras to monitor the 117,000 hectares of forest in the department. The objective is to detect outbreaks of fire more easily, in order to be able to act as quickly as possible. The device is installed on 16 high points (9 pylons and 7 water towers). Cost of the operation: 1.2 million euros excluding taxes and 100,000 euros annually in operating costs, specifies franceinfo the lieutenant-colonel of firefighters Marc Rallu.
The bill may seem heavy, but the officer notes that in 2015, in the department, a fire of 115 hectares had cost 500,000 euros, between the burnt equipment, the hourly allowances of the firefighters, food, drink and clothing. used. “With the cameras, we could have intervened more quickly”, believes Marc Rallu. The lieutenant-colonel takes the example of a fire detected in Saint-Mars-d’Outillé, on May 10, where the device gave firefighters an advantage. “We saw the plume of smoke, we thought, ‘There, it’s burning’. So rather than committing four vehicles as we normally would have done that day, we committed eight from the start.“, says Lieutenant-Colonel Marc Rallu. In the end, two hectares were destroyed. A balance sheet that could have been greater without the new device, he says.
To monitor forests and vegetation in general (particularly cultivated fields), firefighters also rely on meteorologists. Since 2020, in the North defense zone, a daily assessment of the risk of fires has been carried out, between June 15 and September 15, using indicators established by Météo France, by looking, among other things, at dead vegetation and living vegetation. “We evaluate every day, with the departments, and according to the schedule, the fire risk”explains Colonel Olivier Desquiens. “At the end of July, the harvest is in full swing and the temperatures can be extreme”he illustrates, recalling that special training is required to read and interpret the forecaster’s bulletins.
Although still unclear, the threat of summer fires worries firefighters in Hauts-de-France, as well as in Sarthe. “The awareness is recent, but the evolution is very rapid”welcomes Colonel Olivier Desquiens. “Today, global warming is not yet significant, but it will quickly become so”anticipates Lieutenant-Colonel Marc Rallu.