Resumption of fire brought under control in Porge after the Saumos megafire

In Porge, the Saumos megafire crisis is far from forgotten. “Due to too many calls to offer donations to those affected, we thank you for no longer calling the switchboard and consulting the town hall's social networks to find out the details. We thank you for your generosity”, immediately indicates the welcome message from the municipality. Crossed three times by the extraordinary fire this summer, the town had quite a scare on Sunday when a fire broke out again in the peat near the Joncru pond.

The Gironde firefighters very quickly mobilized an important device to put it out: 60 firefighters and 7 forest fire trucks were on site. Several air drops were also carried out. “It was not a sensational fire, but there are difficulties accessing this area. This is why the device was so important,” explains SDIS 33. And the strategy worked: the fire was put out in one hour and contained to 0.5 hectares. This Monday, only residual fumaroles persist. Certain points of the peat, underground, can also remain hot. The area continues to be monitored by firefighters with the support of the DFCI to prevent a resumption of the fire. A vigilance that will have to last a long time... Six months after the Landiras megafire in 2022, the basements of Hostens were still burning.

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“A hell of a lot of pressure”

Martial Zaninetti, the mayor of Porge, confides to Le Figaro that he felt “a lot of pressure” when he learned of the fire resuming on Sunday. “When I was warned by the fire service, it brought back memories. When the fire was classified as level 2, I was afraid it would start again. Fortunately the reactions of the SDIS and the DFCI were complementary, effective and proactive,” declares the councilor. In his town, where nearly 200 buildings were ravaged by flames this summer, the time has come for reconstruction.