In Quebec, the fire does not let up firefighters who are fighting on several fronts in the north of the province. More than 11,000 people have had to leave their homes due to the threat of fires in the communities where they live. In one of them, Normetal, a seven-hour drive from Montreal, the flames came up to 500 meters from the homes. RFI spoke with victims.
First modification:
With Pascale Guéricolas, special envoy to northern Quebec
The inhabitants of Chibougameau, a city of 7,000 inhabitants, found refuge in Lac Saint-Jean, more specifically in Roberval, which welcomed them very warmly. Throughout the day on Wednesday June 7, people came to offer rooms, caravans and even houses to those who had to leave their homes very quickly. To such an extent that the cots installed in a sports center are hardly used, since most people stay in private homes.
“We have implemented our emergency plan here in Roberval, with our crisis unit”, explains Serge Bergeron, mayor of the city. “We had to find beds, all the sanitary products, sandwiches to feed the people. The people were very cooperative , because the IGA supermarket, for example, sent someone out of opening hours to provide us with juices, bread… People came here because they heard the news in the media, people from Roberval came to offer their help: ‘I want to give a few hours’, ‘How can I help?’, ‘Can I host someone in my house, do I have a free room?’, and all that. several beds here, but also, and as a main objective, to put these people in much more comfortable conditions than sleeping on a cot like the one we have, with just a blanket and a small pillow.”
The news about the evolution of the fire is quite encouraging, since it is advancing more slowly than expected. At the site, firefighters have erected a firebreak several kilometers long, a kind of trench, to prevent the flames from reaching houses and a wood construction factory where oil tanks are located.
Tense situation north of Montreal
Although things have recently improved in eastern Quebec, where it has been raining for several days, the fires are much more threatening in the Abitibi region north of Montreal. The weather is still very dry in this area, and the softwood trees burn like straw.
Quebec Prime Minister François Legault acknowledges that there are not enough firefighters to fight the 160 fires that ravage the country. Firefighters are concentrating their efforts in the larger towns. The pilots of the tankers that put out the flames and the aircraft need a little rest.
Fortunately, American firefighters arrived at the scene. The arrival of a hundred French firefighters is also expected. A much-appreciated help in this battle, which leaves no respite for those who see how hundreds of thousands of hectares go up in smoke.
