Fire risk

Understanding the causes and adopting the right reflexes

Forest fires, whose consequences are heavy for people, possessions and natural areas, are most of the time of human origin. By adopting the right behaviour and the right reflexes, they can therefore be avoided.

Preventing fires in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

A major challenge for our territory

With 4 national parks, 9 natural regional parks and a number of other natural protected areas, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur is a natural setting. Like other territories, it is vulnerable to fire risk and forest fires, especially in summer: with 51% of its surface area occupied by forests (mainly made up of white oak, Scotch and Aleppo pine,) it is the second most forest-covered region in France. Among the risk factors are drought, temperature and wind, which all have an impact on the sensitivity to fire and its spreading. In the Sud region, the Office National des Forêts and the Garde Régionale Forestière carry out crucial prevention work in the field.

The consequences of forest fires are very heavy:

Impact on people and possessions
Impact on air quality: wood fumes can cause damage to lung function.
A devastating effect on animals and plants in natural areas: only large mammals and some birds manage to flee as the fire approaches.

90% of fires are caused by humans

Therefore they can be avoided

Most of the time, fires are of human origin. According to the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, 90 % of fires are started by economic activity (public works building sites, farming activities), a cigarette stub or a leisure activity: barbecues or campfires. They are therefore the result of the imprudent and dangerous behaviour of people living there or tourists, and could be avoided by adopting the right behaviour.

Preventing fires: the right reflexes

Every day:

Organise barbecues far away from vegetation, which can catch fire, and prefer electric barbecues, they are less polluting and don’t generate any CO2 emissions in the air
Put out your cigarette stubs in an ashtray (and not on the ground or by throwing them out of your car window)
Do not smoke near natural areas such as wasteland or fields
Do not leave glass bottles on the ground: in sunlight, they can create a magnifying glass effect and set fire to the grasses around them.

Where you are staying:

Do not use tools which are likely to cause sparks near plants, especially when those plants are dry
Do not store any form of fuel near dwellings

Man looking for information on his smartphone

Where can I find out about this?

Météo France’s Météo des Forêts (forest weather forecast) estimates the danger of fire foreseen from meteorological forecasts and the dry state of vegetation. The information is issued on a departmental scale, with 4 danger levels: low (green), moderate (yellow), high (orange), and very high (red). Caution: a low level of danger does not mean that there is no fire risk.
The Préfectures’ sites. For example, the Bouches-du-Rhône site, which warns of possible regulated access and closing per range.

Focus on the Garde Régionale Forestière

Made up of 250 young people aged from 18 to 25, the Garde Régionale Forestière, created on the initiative of the Region in the Climate Plan, plays a fundamental role in the prevention of fire risks and forest fires in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur. Its missions are to develop the culture of fire risk with the inhabitants and tourists who go into the forests and strengthen the capacities of regional actors where prevention, information, awareness and monitoring are concerned. Supervised by forest and fire professionals, these young people have done one week of high-level training and acquired the theoretical basics of fire risk prevention.

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Une publication partagée par Parc des Préalpes d’Azur (@parcprealpesdazur)