Yesterday morning, the surveillance and alerting system of the Force 06 service was presented in the presence of the president of the PACA region, Éric Ciotti. This was an opportunity to see the new equipment available to the firefighters of the department and to visit the water bomber helicopter base in Valbonne.
Sunday afternoon, in Castagnier, a fire ravaged the heights of Nice. By Tuesday, it was the turn of the sorting center in Villeneuve-Loubet to catch fire.
Summer is barely starting. SDIS06 must continuously ensure the safety of the department’s forest cover. This is not an easy mission as it represents 236,000 hectares, or 55% of the department’s territory.
The forest involves several major issues:
– the environment (soil and biodiversity preservation)
– a source of tourism radiance and attractiveness
– a valuable economic resource (wood industry, 2000 direct and indirect jobs)
It must therefore be protected from fire risks, as many houses, businesses, or buildings are located on its edges.
In 2017, 62 incidents destroyed almost 510 hectares, including 35 hectares in Vence at the beginning of the month.
Three days ago, a much worse incident increased this toll at the gates of Nice in the municipality of Castagniers, at “Chemin de Lingador.” 120 hectares burned, the garage of Mouriez, a car, a cabin; three houses were touched by the flames. In this giant battle, SDIS lost a vehicle, completely surrounded by the flames. Fortunately, the two occupants managed to escape unharmed.
390 firefighters were mobilized, supported by a SERA column and an SDIS83 column, along with 6 water carriers containing 10 to 22,000 liters to ensure close resupply for the firefighters.
But this setup can evolve based on weather risks and needs according to the type of intervention encountered.
It is structured as follows:
– 1 “central” PC manned by Force 06
– 9/12 “active lookouts” from July 1st to September 30th
– 17 to 20 patrols
– 8 water carriers (10,000 – 22,000 and 28,000 liters for the largest)
– 8 fire trucks with a capacity of 1500 liters for “forest fires”
– 45 civil engineering vehicles
The lookout posts play more than a crucial role in this battle. In 2016, they detected more than half (58%) of the 235 fire outbreaks. 107 of these alerts led to intervention (46 incinerations, 36 natural fires, 5 urban fires, and 18 false alarms).
On the SDIS side, between 154 and 587 firefighters are mobilized. They are distributed across 7 to 24 “forest fire” intervention groups; 4 groups are mobilized for urban nature fires. All supported by 5 units of 12 firefighters specially trained to intervene in hard-to-reach areas.
SDIS or Force 06 forces can also count on direct aerial support.
– an Écureuil B3 helicopter (1000 liters in drop version)
– 2 heavy helicopters B212 (1400 liters)
An inefficient support. This is why the department, represented by its president Éric Ciotti, has asked the government for the possibility to station 2 Trackers (3300 liters) on permanent alert at the Cannes-Mandelieu Pelicandrome base, from July 1st to September 3rd. These aircraft carry 45 trained firefighters.
Thus, everything is being done to minimize the number and impact of forest fires on the department. Eric Ciotti, present this morning, also thanked the firefighters for their work and constant commitment.
