French President praises firefighters after summer of forest fires tear through France

FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron has praised his country’s firefighters after a summer of HUGE and constant forest fires.

Taking to Twitter on Thursday, August 11, the French President wrote: “Throughout the territory, more than 10,000 firefighters and civil security personnel are mobilized against the flames. With courage and determination, they hold on. These firefighters are our heroes.”

He added: “I have a special thought for Commander Pascal Allaire and Lieutenant Martial Morin, who died this summer responding to the flames, as well as for their families. Our pain is immense. The Nation stands with all our injured firefighters.”

“For people evacuated from areas in flames, it is waiting and worrying. For the affected inhabitants, it is sometimes a life that is erased. Save all lives, save all that can be saved, then rebuild: no one will be forgotten.”

Partout sur le territoire, plus de 10 000 pompiers et personnels de la sécurité civile sont mobilisés contre les flammes. Avec courage et détermination, ils tiennent. Ces soldats du feu sont nos héros. pic.twitter.com/KMUzMEYuTL

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) August 11, 2022

People reacted to the president’s praise on the social media platform.

One person wrote: “Generally the heroes obtain the recognition of the nation. Ours (caregivers, firefighters, etc.) are now exhausted. We must increase their salaries and their staff. And organise ourselves so that our public services are considerably strengthened.”

Généralement les héros obtiennent la reconnaissance de la nation. Les nôtres (soignants, pompiers…) sont aujourd’hui épuisés. Il faut augmenter leurs salaires et leurs effectifs. Et nous organiser pour que nos services publics soient considérablement renforcés.

— Méda Dominique @dominiquemeda@piaille.fr (@dominique_meda) August 11, 2022

“Is the reintegration of non-vaccinated firefighters coming soon? Because I don’t think COVID is that dangerous on this ground…” another said.

https://twitter.com/ouai_la_classe/status/1557663134193688576?s=21&t=hE5PivzC0AS3kXeyNaVkvQ

The president’s comments come after recent huge fires in Gironde and Maine-et-Loire.

On Wednesday, August 10, a huge fire covering over 6000 hectares in Gironde, France, saw the evacuation of 3,800 people, which later rose to 10,000.

Prior to that, a fire in France’s Maine-et-Loire was still raging as of Tuesday, August 9, according to firefighters, who said that it continues its progression south.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article, do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.