"Stand in four columns, facing me," launches Master Frédéric loudly into the scorching June air.
Line up, space out, don't say it's not possible, try!
»Gathered in front of the 42-year-old soldier, fifty college students in navy blue tracksuits and t-shirts bearing the inscription" Cadets marin-pompiers Marseille "sweat after running up a steep slope in the pine forest of Château-Gombert, in the north from Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône).
These girls and boys from Priority Education Network (REP) establishments are between 14 and 16 years old.
Volunteers, they signed their cadet engagement last fall: an educational system set up ten years ago by the Marseille firefighters in partnership with National Education.
Since November, their Wednesday afternoons (excluding holidays and confinement) have been held in the barracks of the Marseille city, and in the field, in the company of firefighters, supervisors and former volunteer cadets.
Rescued when she was 11
Young people catch their breath.
They will now deploy fire hoses, six pipes 20 meters long, which they unroll and connect before the valves of the tanker trucks of the Forest Fire Intervention Group (Giff) are opened.
Amane, 15, places a spear rolled up on the carrying hurdle on his back, a frame that allows him to carry this equipment of nearly 20 kilos.
The young girl courageously walks in full sun to the top of the hill: "They push us to go to the end of the effort", she appreciates.
Amane positions a carrying rack on her shoulders: "Tighten the straps tighter, otherwise you'll ruin your back!"
»Advises a firefighter.
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Tall, black hair gathered in a bun, determined gaze and a bright smile, this 3rd year student at André-Chénier college, in the 12th arrondissement of Marseille, says she is attracted to the security professions.
"Firefighters are important in the city," said the teenager, remembering the night when a fire broke out in her building in the Bois-Lemaître district, where she still lives with her parents, her twin and her little sister. .
Thanks to the firefighters, the families were evacuated.
Amane was 11 years old.
“To make progress in a forest fire, you always have to have a spare lance,” says Malik, 19.
This former cadet, who is preparing for the entrance examination to the Marseille fire brigade battalion (BMPM), has been supervising young people since 2015. He explains to them the role of the leader, that of the team members, and asks them to help each other.
“The interest is that there is cohesion!
A message received five out of five by Nassur, 15, who now slips the spear around his shoulder and shoots proudly.
Nassur, 15, deploys the 6-meter-long pipes in the hill.
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With his small beard, mustache and athletic build, this fellow born in Mayotte and arrived in France at 7 years old is more than his age.
"Since I was little, I want to join the navy and work in a team", assures the student of 3rd, who lives with cousins in the city of Rosiers, a high place of the deal in Marseille.
The valves open, the bursts of laughter erupt under the splashes.
The session could turn into a water fight, but the elders are watching and calling everyone to order.
Young people obey.
Malik continues: “When a fire is out, there are embers that need to be drowned.
To tidy up, roll the spears and make beautiful hurdles for me!
"
The goal is also to change the perception of the profession
During their eight months of training, the cadets learn by heart the ranks of the national navy - the firefighters of Marseille are military -, but also how to place themselves in close order, deploy fire hoses, and execute gestures. first aid.
They also practice rope climbing.
The kids alternate between physical training (running, abdominals, push-ups, etc.) and the discovery of dog training, the extrication of road accident victims, or even the extinction of urban fires and forest fires.
They are also introduced to sea rescue, the specialty of "fire sailors", the nickname of the men of the BMPM.
The intense program is interspersed with tests so as not to lose them on the way.
A specific feature of the Marseille firefighters: sea rescue. France Keyser
Launched in 2011, the system is part of the “Prevention of urban violence” unit, set up by Marseille firefighters to change the perception of their profession.
In some Marseille cities, school failure, discrimination, poverty and unemployment form the breeding ground for anger against all authority.
Men and intervention vehicles have already been graveled.
"We are sometimes obliged to arrive without a flashing light, then to parley before being able to enter a building and bring help", regrets a firefighter.
These little ambassadors therefore participate in promoting the profession in uniform.
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With the 10th promotion, which will return to school on All Saints' Day, 500 young Marseillais will have gone through the cadet program.
“They have different origins and come together to discover our profession while learning the values of the battalion: honor, homeland, discipline and respect, explains the principal master, Vincent, who took part in this adventure from the start. .
It is important to show everyone that they are responsible for their success.
»Each college student signs a charter and agrees to be diligent, punctual, sociable and to work well at school.
Any deviation is sanctioned by an exit from the device.
“This supervision can have a positive impact on the orientation of students who we feel are dropping out,” said a teacher from Henri-Wallon college.
"Being a cadet and leaving the neighborhood saved my life"
The program owes a lot to the firefighter Thierry Mourre, who died this winter at the age of 59 following an illness.
The one affectionately nicknamed the "daddy of the cadets" aimed to give a boost to the youth and help them to climb "the social staircase".
Learning punctuality, politeness, assiduity, discipline, a taste for effort and solidarity is useful for all life, say the trainers.
“When they arrive, some don't listen to anything and are harsh.
Then, little by little, they change their behavior, ”explains principal teacher Vincent.
The confidence and demands of the military have kept some from going wrong.
The former cadet Khaled, 20, demands rigor and respect from the youngest.
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This is the case for Khaled, 20: “Being a cadet and leaving the neighborhood saved my life,” he admits.
My mother is very grateful.
Thierry Mourre was convinced that all young people had potential.
The young man, now in civic service, returned voluntarily to the Pointe-Rouge Intervention and Rescue Center to accompany the 9th promotion of cadets.
In the barracks, girls and boys take turns trying to pull themselves up by arm's length onto a plank located more than 2 meters from the ground.
Amane manages to climb.
Back downstairs, the young girl is satisfied: “I like to discover the profession.
I want more and more to follow a military preparation.
Nassur, for his part, has made a habit of doing push-up sets on Wednesdays, and also trains at home the other days of the week.
He dreams of joining the Ecole de maistrance, which trains future officers.
And to walk in the footsteps of three former cadets: one is a deminer, another police officer, and a young woman has boarded the aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle!
Equally important, dozens of adolescents have learned, thanks to their experience with the BMPM, to project themselves into their lives as adults and citizens.
Especially since they are not released into the wild after a year spent with the battalion.
Invested firefighters follow their study projects, seek the right contacts to promote their professional integration.
A partnership with Pôle emploi started in 2020, and the creation of a place to meet is in the pipeline.
Because if young people get attached to the firefighters, the reverse is also true: "What we bring them, they give us back a hundredfold", estimates the principal Vincent.