Landes wildfire declared fixed as 250 evacuees cleared to return home

Fire breaks out near Luglon

The wildfire erupted on Thursday, August 13, in the commune of Luglon, in the heart of the vast Landes de Gascogne forest massif in southwestern France. Over the following days, the blaze consumed 1,700 hectares of pine forest across the communes of Luglon and Garein. Authorities evacuated 650 residents from the two villages, starting Friday afternoon. No casualties and no property damage were reported throughout the incident.

Evacuees shelter in Sabres

Many displaced residents, particularly from Luglon, were housed in mobile homes in the neighboring commune of Sabres. Mélodie, a young woman evacuated with her family, described the days as slow and sedentary, filling time with crossword puzzles and small games. Philippe Dandy, a 68-year-old retiree from Garein, was evacuated on Friday afternoon and waited two anxious days before getting clearance to return. He described the scene on Saturday evening, when a red glow was visible behind the trees, very close by.

I have lived here for years, I have seen fires, but never like this one. A terrible force. Saturday evening, it was fear. We could see behind those trees a red glow and it was very close. It is very frightening.

His wife Monique Dandy stayed at the village hall in Garein, helping volunteers prepare meals and snacks for the firefighters rather than going home immediately.

Ground operations and stabilization

By Sunday evening, August 16, the fire was described as "less intense" but "not yet fixed" by Prefect Gilles Clavreul. He authorized the first returns: about 50 residents of Garein, specifically those on two streets assessed as out of danger. Clavreul spoke of the beginning of a return to normal but warned that difficult and dangerous zones remained very active. He expressed hope that all residents could return progressively during the week.

On the ground, firefighters deployed bulldozers through dense vegetation to create firebreaks, separating burned areas from untouched forest. One firefighter described the priority as drowning any smoke or micro-flame spotted, especially along the edges of burned zones. Colonel Arnaud Fabre, head of the department's firefighters, reported only one fire re-ignition on Sunday. Some 550 firefighters, supported by military personnel, six water-bomber aircraft, and dozens of volunteers, farmers, and local residents, worked to secure the fire's perimeter.

It is painstaking work, meticulous. But it is essential because re-ignited fires are often more violent than the fires themselves. If we had taken five more minutes, the re-ignition would have covered a hectare.

Fire declared fixed on Monday

On Monday morning, August 17, Stéphanie Monteuil, secretary general of the prefecture, announced that the fire had not progressed overnight and was now "fixed." She cautioned that fixed does not mean extinguished and urged continued vigilance. About 250 residents of Luglon were cleared to return home, adding to the roughly 50 who had already returned to Garein on Sunday evening.

Prefect Clavreul was in Paris on Monday to represent the Landes at a meeting with the Prime Minister focused on the mega-fires that have broken out this summer. The number of firefighters still mobilized on Monday morning varied between sources, with figures ranging from 350 to 450.