Exhausted crews battle wildfire as heat grips southwest France

High temperatures revive smouldering embers, as exhausted crews lean on local volunteers to keep battle going

At Le Temple, a normally quiet country road bordered by cornfields on one side and tightly planted pine forest on the other became a busy firefighting base Wednesday afternoon.

Smouldering hot spots in the forest floor repeatedly burst into flame as crews moved quickly from one to another. Firefighters from across France doused the flames, then poured bottled water over themselves during breaks beside trucks parked on the sun-baked pavement.

The flare-ups were part of the continuing fight against a major wildfire west of Bordeaux that had burned 240,000 hectares and forced 220,000 people to evacuate as of 3:30 p.m. local time Wednesday, according to the Gironde prefecture.

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Water bombers emerged through the smoke above the trees, one after another for about an hour, dropping water along the forest edge while ground crews attacked hot spots below.

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Soldiers from the nearby Camp de Souge army base soon arrived to control traffic and restrict access to the area. Groups of volunteers and farmers from surrounding towns, organized informally and working on their own initiative, waited on the outskirts with water tanks mounted on their trucks.

"It is a small victory," said Lt.-Col. Didier Nicolleau of the Vienne fire and rescue service after crews quickly contained a flare-up along the forest edge.

But the work is constant, he said. Hot, dry conditions mean even small pockets of lingering heat can ignite nearby vegetation again.

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Once-again soaring temperatures in France and Spain was complicating efforts to contain forest fires that multiple experts told CBC News were unprecedented in scale.

Romain, a Paris firefighter who has been rotating through the area since the fire began, said the physical toll was beginning to show. CBC News is identifying him only by his first name because firefighters who were not commanders were not permitted to provide their surnames.

"We're starting to get tired," he said. "It's very difficult."

He said support from local residents had helped lift firefighters' morale.

Along the roadside, volunteers hauled large water tanks filled from nearby lakes, allowing firefighting crews to refill their trucks without leaving the fire zone.

Tommy Planeilles said he had volunteered every day since Friday, often working until 2 or 3 a.m. before returning a few hours later.

"We want to save our forest," he said. "The forest is beautiful, with the animals and everything. When it's burned, it's not the same."

Planeilles, who lives in Sainte-Hélène, near Bordeaux, said many volunteers stayed behind even after evacuations began. While children and many families left, he and others remained to help protect their village before moving on to assist neighbouring communities.

He said residents have learned from the devastating 2022 Gironde wildfires that even when flames appear extinguished, the danger isn't over.

"The fire goes underground," he said. "Sometimes everything is calm at night, then we wake up the next morning and it starts all over again."

Questions about logistical support

The reliance on local volunteers also raised questions for at least one business owner about whether crews were receiving enough logistical support.

Laurent Maury, who owns a supermarket in Le Porge, said a firefighting commander called him late at night seeking gasoline because crews could not obtain it through normal channels.

He said he contacted his supplier, who remotely opened the pumps for firefighters. An hour later, he said, another commander called with the same request.

"It's not surprising. Citizens know what needs to be done for their village," Maury said. He added, "it's a shame to see that the organization isn't at the level it should be."

Verity is a reporter for CBC in Montreal. She previously worked for the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star and the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal.

With files from Nahlah Ayed, Angela Johnston and Rafael Miró