The fire is far from being under control in the Var. The prefect of the department, Evence Richard, held a press conference this Wednesday afternoon to take stock of the development currently ravaging the Moors.
The human toll is increasing
After the discovery of a first victim in his home at La Vanade, in the town of Grimaud, Evence Richard announced a second victim. If the first person has not yet been formally identified, it could be a man in his fifties discovered in his completely charred house in the locality of La Vanade, in the town of Grimaud. The Draguignan prosecutor’s office indicates that the second victim was found in the same place, under the rubble of this house ravaged by fire. Identifications are in progress. There are also 24 slight injuries in the population, including 19 for slight poisoning, and five among firefighters.
The fire starts again
With a change in wind direction, from the south-east now, the fire intensified in the middle of the day. Above all, it changed direction, after going to the south of the Moors, towards Saint-Tropez and Gassin, it now goes back to the north and the town of Vidauban. Two hot spots concentrate the efforts of the 1,200 firefighters on site, a first in the Gassin La Môle sector, and a second further north in the Cannet des Maures sector. “We do weather points several times a day, there is some hope that things will calm down next night, but nothing is certain,” he warned. The fire has already covered 7,000 hectares since Monday evening.
No return home or campsite
Faced with the resumption of fire, the prefect of Var asked residents, as well as holidaymakers to stay in the places of reception provided by the various municipalities, and especially not to go home, or to his vacation spot. . An eighth campsite was even evacuated preventively from Plan de la Tour. “We will reassess the situation at the end of the afternoon depending on the wind forecast, but it is not current to authorize the reinstatements. There may be violent outbreaks of fire as we are currently facing, ”he announced. He also reiterated the call for caution on traffic lanes still open, and especially to avoid moving to leave the way free for emergency services.
A weather problem, more than means
Asked about a possible lack of means to fight against the most violent fire of the summer, Evence Richard swept the question aside. “I remind you that several means of control were less than 8 km from the start of the fire and that they intervened very quickly, in a few minutes. In addition, we have never mobilized so many resources, with almost all the air resources at our disposal. It is not a question of means, but more weather. With very dry weather, and strong gusts of wind. The reality of the relief, with the Massif des Maures very difficult to access, is also an explanation, ”he said.
The A57 motorway cut, the A8 could follow
The Prefect decided to cut the A57 between exit 10 at Cuers, and exit 13 at Cannet des Maures “given an unfavorable development of the current fire, due to the wind of ‘is, significant plumes of smoke reduce visibility on the main roads in the area. The speed is for the moment reduced to 70 km / h on the impacted sector of the A8, but a closure could also be considered according to the evolution of the fire.