Thousands of hectares reduced to ashes.
Since the beginning of the summer, France has been burning everywhere, from the Ardèche to Maine-et-Loire, via the Landes, the Gironde, the Jura or even the Isère.
While most of the fires were started accidentally or even naturally - in particular due to high temperatures - a significant proportion of these would be the malicious act of arsonists.
This is why, systematically, an investigation is opened each time a fire breaks out.
In fact, since the start of the summer season, 26 individuals have been arrested throughout the territory for acts of arson, we learned this Tuesday from the Ministry of the Interior.
Four of them have already received a conviction and six have been remanded in custody, adds a judicial source.
320 gendarmes called in reinforcement
Two arrests were also widely reported.
Both dated July 28.
In Ardèche first, a 44-year-old man arrested by the police admitted to being the author of numerous fire starts in the department.
In the Hérault, it was a volunteer firefighter who confessed to the investigators to be at the origin of several fires.
In police custody, he explained that he "
acted in order to provoke the intervention of the firefighters in order to extract himself from an oppressive family environment
", but also for "
the excitement that the interventions caused in him
".
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This series of arrests results from the implementation of significant "
human and technological means
" to stop the wave of arson, according to the Ministry of the Interior.
Thus, in addition to the mobile gendarmerie personnel already present on the ground, 320 departmental soldiers have been mobilized in recent weeks on missions to evacuate and secure the sites affected by the flames.
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Several gendarmerie helicopters also flew over certain risk areas, in order to act as a deterrent for possible arsonists or burglars of evacuated homes.
In addition, criminal identification technicians (TIC) joined the military to determine the origin of the fires and direct investigations towards possible suspects.
In Gironde, a "forest vigilance platoon" has been set up, with bikers who criss-cross the forest, for the purpose of prevention.
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