“
Hello, I'm on vacation for two weeks in Landiras, can I help?
"
These fires traumatized me, I would like to help
"... Calls and messages of support have multiplied in recent months on the social networks of the Gironde firefighters.
This sudden craze comes after a summer marked by successive fires, which ravaged 72,000 hectares of forest.
"
Is six times more than the average of the last ten years
", recalled Emmanuel Macron in a television statement this Friday, October 28.
“
Since January, there have been 730 candidates
”, a figure which more or less represents the usual total over a year, rejoices Commander Matthieu Jomain, head of communication and protocol for the Gironde firefighters.
"
It's a first to have so many applications
."
A welcome workforce as the firefighters of the South-West department "
are faced with an explosion in their activity
": "
In 2018, we carried out 129,846 operations, against 145,370 in 2021
“, informs the commander, convinced that the figures for 2022 will be higher, taking into account the interventions of this summer.
Same enthusiasm noted on the side of the young firefighters who were widely mobilized.
Aged 11 to 18, they meet every week throughout the school year, to be introduced to the trade in the company of professionals, in particular on firefighting techniques.
Read alsoFires, accidents … These volunteer firefighters who come to the aid of others
If this phenomenon had already been observed following attacks, the interest observed in 2022 remains unprecedented.
For example, "
in 2019, two major fires were declared in Bordeaux
" and no significant increase in applications had been notified.
At the national level, Eric Flores, vice-president of the National Federation of Firefighters of France (FNSPF), also notices an increase in questions around volunteering.
"
We see it through the number of clicks on our website and calls for the federation
," he reports.
"Sustaining the commitments of volunteers"
However, the correlation between the seasonal fires of 2022 and the increase in applications has not been fully identified: “
It is still too early to be certain, we remain cautious.
But a part was necessarily sensitive to what happened
, ”says Matthieu Jomain.
Thus, in order to ensure the potential and the motivation of the “
suitable candidates
”, the latter go through an upstream interview with firefighters.
"
If we don't properly explain their missions to them beforehand, we risk losing them quickly.
“, explains Matthieu Jomain.
When people register after a significant event such as the fires this summer, some may experience disenchantment once assigned to interventions that do not correspond to them.
The objective of the professionals is therefore now to “
perpetuate the commitments of the volunteers
”.
Measures have been put in place, such as a “
compensation each month according to the number of call duty periods carried out
”.
Volunteer firefighters can also benefit from an “
evolution in terms of rank
” and wear the same outfit as professionals.
In addition, in order to energize the process, new recruits “
can now choose the missions to which they will be assigned
”.
Read alsoVolunteer firefighters at the heart of firefighting
All these novelties, accompanied by recruitment campaigns, aim to attract “
Mr. and Mrs. Everybody
”, endowed with “
an altruistic sensitivity
” and “
personal and professional stability
”.
If these recruitment techniques work more and more in cities, "
we are terribly lacking in volunteers in rural and peri-urban areas
", laments Eric Flores.
