Several brush fires occupied dozens of firefighters on this Sunday afternoon of August 17. If the morning had been calm enough, hostilities started at 1 p.m. in Orange, on the road to Lyon. In the Aygue bed, the intervention of the 41 firefighters equipped with 14 vehicles was fast but 7,000 m² still burned.
Two houses were protected by rescuers. Mobilized in the air, the Morane water bombardier helicopter and the Dash 8 of Civil Security did not make drops due to the proximity of the flames with the dwellings.
Vigilance orange heat wave maintained this Monday, August 19
The helicopter was nevertheless decisive a few minutes later, around 1:20 p.m., at the Route d’Entraigues, in Bédarrides, where a car made a road trip before igniting. Assessment: The two drops made it possible to contain the fire which extended over 400 m².
Finally, around 4:45 p.m., along the road to Aubignan, on the D55, in Caromb, a hectare of vegetation went up in smoke in an undergrowth. Again, a powerful water drop by the Morane device made it possible to stop the fire. The 22 firefighters mobilized with their 8 devices then carried out driving operations. The thesis of the cigarette megot is advanced by the gendarmerie.
Throughout the day, climatic conditions were unfavorable, explain the firefighters. The Mistral has blown in gusts but should molley in the coming hours. The department, in “very severe” risk concerning forest fires should go into “severe” on Monday, August 18. The orange heat wave will also remain maintained by Météo-France in the department indicates the prefecture.
