They are now more than 2,000 firefighters mobilized, supported by all the air resources of the country.
But nothing helps: the fire advances and nibbles the forest of Gironde.
In one week, the fires in La Teste-du-Buch and Landiras destroyed more than 20,000 ha of vegetation, helped by the weather conditions.
Unheard of since 1949 when a huge fire destroyed more than 50,000 ha of pines.
A week ago, when two fires broke out about sixty kilometers apart, no one could have imagined this.
Tuesday, July 12: two fires break out
It is 3 p.m. when a van carrying green waste stops on forest track 214. This road, sheltered by pines, three kilometers from the Dune du Pila, is generally used to bypass traffic jams on the road. access to beaches.
A few minutes later, the vehicle will catch fire after an electrical malfunction.
Quickly, and in the hours that followed, a few dozen hectares of pines were destroyed by the flames.
Around 4 p.m., the firefighters were called for another fire, this time in the Landiras sector.
A witness will recount having noticed a car leaving the scene before seeing flames on the side.
He and two other people try to put out the flames, without success.
An individual was arrested on Monday, suspected of having started the fire.
Here too, the fire is spreading very quickly, forcing the evacuation of At 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday, 600 ha have already burned in the area.
Wednesday July 13: campsites evacuated
The fires do not calm down overnight, quite the contrary.
At 7 a.m., nearly 1,200 hectares had burned, including 445 hectares in La Teste-de-Buch and 800 in Landiras.
The balance sheet will increase to 1700 hectares at noon.
In the first sector, the campsites were evacuated one by one, 6,000 tourists being taken to a temporary accommodation centre.
Nearly 600 firefighters are mobilized, supported by two Canadairs and two Dash planes.
“The wind despite everything present and the drought unfortunately contributes to ravaging biodiversity”, laments at the end of the day Gérald Darmanin, then on the spot.
“We already have more than 15,000 hectares burned since the start of the year, whereas we were at less than 1,000 hectares on the same date last year,” continues the Minister of the Interior.
Thursday July 14: forest fire red alert
In La Teste-de-Buch, “the situation remains uncertain because of the difficulties of access”, alerts the prefecture of Gironde.
In Landiras, "the fire is still not fixed".
The toll continues, day after day, to increase, but spares the human victims: 3700 hectares of forest went up in smoke in the early morning.
The number of firefighters mobilized has increased to 1,000. The aerial ballet continues without interruption in the sky, with four Canadairs and two Dash planes mobilized.
During the day, we deplore the first damage outside the forests: two houses were destroyed and several others are threatened, in addition to the 5300 hectares of vegetation that went up in smoke at the end of the day.
Evacuations are increasing: at the beginning of the afternoon, 4000 inhabitants of the town of Cazaux are evacuated in the sector of La Teste-de-Buch;
those of Guillos and the localities of Lahon, Hil and Petit-Hil are also evacuated in the Landiras sector.
The situation in Gironde is all the more complicated as forest fires are recorded elsewhere in the territory - near Avignon, for example, a fire quickly destroys hundreds of hectares of vegetation -, making it impossible for the continuous presence of the means overhead on these two fires alone.
Red vigilance for the risk of forest fires is activated by the prefecture, which prohibits the movement of people and vehicles in forest areas.
Friday, July 15: evacuations continue
The images of the port of Cazaux surrounded by flames are incredible and testify to the violence of the fire.
In the evening, 8000 hectares of forests in Gironde have already burned and the flames are still out of control.
While campers can pick up their belongings in the evacuated campsites, near the Dune du Pilat, new inhabitants are evacuated in the Landiras sector to reach the number of 1900 evacuees.
It is on this sector, where the fire destroyed 4700 hectares of forest, that the aerial means are then concentrated.
That evening, nearly 12,000 people were evacuated.
Saturday July 16: always more firefighters
Firefighters, ever more numerous (1200 firefighters, 3 Canadairs and two Dash planes) continue to fight against the flames at the risk of their lives: four of them were injured, a truck overturned and another even burned.
But at the end of the day, 10,200 ha of forest had been destroyed, including 7,000 in the Landiras sector alone.
Faced with the advance of the flames, in the sector of La Teste-de-Buch, the command post was moved to the zoo, still preserved from the fires.
In Landiras, 1,900 additional residents were evacuated, bringing the total number of evacuations to 4,100.
Sunday July 17: the fire reaches the ocean
1,500 firefighters, including some from the other side of France, are now mobilized.
In the La Teste-de-Buch sector, the fire has reached the ocean and is descending towards the south.
In Landiras too, the fire remains out of control: 2,100 people are evacuated from the town of Cabanac-et-Villagrains.
The wind does not help, as it is impossible to predict in which direction it will go.
“As of this evening, three additional planes will support the six already committed, to bring the committed fleet to 9 planes”, wrote in a press release Gérald Darmanin, announcing the arrival of 200 new firefighters and 11 heavy trucks.
Monday July 18: Destroyed campsites
The mobilization of all firefighters is triggered.
"Everyone is called to the fire", insists during a press briefing the prefect of the department, Fabienne Buccio.
At 11 p.m., the prefecture noted the destruction of nearly 1,700 hectares of forest by these "exceptional fires", including 12,000 for Landiras.
In the La Teste-de-Buch sector, 8,000 people from the Miquelots and Pilat districts were evacuated.
A total of 18,000 people, including tourists, were evacuated in the face of the advancing flames, despite the construction of impressive firebreaks through the forest with the support of the army.
The city zoo also had to evacuate its animals, while the command center will also have to move away.
The campsites, evacuated a few days early, were destroyed.
The situation is not improving either in Landiras: 12,000 ha of vegetation burned and 8,000 people were evacuated on this single day, bringing the number of evacuations for the sector to 14,000.
“This evening, two houses and a mobile home burned down,” writes the Gironde prefecture.
Tuesday July 19: more than 20,000 ha burned
The damage is visible from satellites: more than 20,000 ha of forests have been burned by the fires, the Gironde prefecture reported on Tuesday.
An additional 2,000 people were evacuated from the commune of two villages, in the Landiras sector.
The results are still only provisional: “It's not over.
The weather forecast is still calling for hot temperatures, we need rainy days but I don't think we will have any, ”warned the Gironde prefecture, Fabienne Buccio, during a press briefing.
The latter, however, welcomed a day of "calm" in the progression of the two fires which have been ravaging the Gironde for a week, where Emmanuel Macron is due to go on Wednesday.
“We have a much lesser progression” of the two lights of Landiras, 40 km south of Bordeaux, and La Teste-de-Buch, in the Arcachon basin,
according to the prefect.
“Today is very important because we were able to work on the defense against fire.
We were able to really refine, move forward, create major firewalls.
We will continue ".
According to a latest assessment, 7,000 hectares were destroyed in La Teste-de-Buch and 13,300 in the Landiras sector, “without any burned houses, no victims.
Only an individual garage burned down,” added Ms. Buccio.
About 2,000 firefighters, from all over France, and significant air resources (8 Canadair and 2 Dash) were mobilized on Tuesday for these fires which "have been and will remain mega-fires", according to Commander Sébastien Castel. , deputy commander of Codis 33.
