A lull in the relentless struggle waged by the firefighters. The situation is stabilizing in the Var, where a gigantic fire has already ravaged 8,100 hectares in the Massif des Maures since Monday.
“The fire is now fixed but it is not yet under control”, announced Evence Richard, the prefect of Var, this Friday morning. But he also warned: “Resumptions are possible, especially at the hottest hours of the day. “
“” Fixed “means that the head of the fire is no longer moving, but it is not extinguished,” said the director of the departmental fire and rescue service of the Var, Colonel Eric Grohin.
Always 1,000 firefighters on site
Throughout the night, the firefighters were busy securing the edges of the forest, over no less than 80 linear km. A titanic job. The prefect of Var announced that the firefighters would be on site at least until Sunday, depending on the evolution of the fire. “We must remain extremely careful, with the drop in humidity, the rise in temperatures and the expected wind,” insisted the prefect.
In addition, solidarity is organized around Hubert Falco, president of the association of mayors of the Var, with the creation of a one-stop shop in the prefecture. “Each mayor of the municipalities concerned will centralize the needs of the population,” he detailed, recalling that the priority was “the next three days” to overcome the fire. A telephone medical-psychological emergency station has been opened for the victims of these fires, reachable on 06 08 24 46 66, 7 days a week and 24 hours a day.
More than 1,000 firefighters are still on site, supported by 250 machines and air resources. 410 drops took place on Thursday alone.The human toll remains unchanged, with two people dead in a hamlet of Grimaud, 19 people slightly injured and 7 firefighters also slightly injured.