The Head of State arrived at the end of the afternoon at the Luc command post, an hour's drive from Fort Brégançon where he has been living since early August.

Tuesday evening, the fire had traversed 6,500 hectares and knew recoveries: "The battle continues, the fire is not fixed and stabilized, the next hours are particularly decisive", insisted Mr. Macron.

Addressing the gendarmes, firefighters and local elected officials, the president insisted: "If we have this human toll, it is also thanks to you".

This fire caused no casualties among residents and tourists, "and despite three injuries our firefighters continue to be in combat", insisted the Head of State.

The president also wanted to thank "the mayors who have shown their solidarity by welcoming our compatriots or sometimes foreign tourists who were in this area to protect them".

In total, "several thousand" people were evacuated overnight from Monday to Tuesday, he said.

"We have been spared much more than some of our neighbors"

The inhabitants and firefighters of this part of the Var remain marked by the fires of the summer of 2003, in which three firefighters had perished.

Colonel Eric Grohin, firefighters of Var, thus underlined that this fire took "the same corridor" as that of 2003, in "faster", with a speed of propagation of up to 8 kilometers per hour on the relief. .

The priority of the firefighters, insisted the colonel, is the defense of villages and hamlets: "With the fire swings of 700-800 meters, we can not do much except to preserve human lives and houses" , he confessed.

Tuesday evening, nine Canadairs were still turning in the Var above the affected area.

Faced with "this first big fire of the summer campaign", Emmanuel Macron called to "remain modest": "We were much more spared than some of our neighbors, you saw it during the summer season", has t - he recalled, with reference to the fires that affected Greece, Italy and Algeria in particular.

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  • Emmanuel Macron

  • Planet

  • Fire