French firefighters arrive to help battle Canada wildfires
Visit our website:
http://www.france24.com
Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English
Follow us on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/France24_en
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 With their trucks loaded and their equipment ready, these French firefighters are all set
00:04 for their mission.
00:05 But they're operating on unfamiliar territory this week.
00:10 Just over a hundred reinforcements have been flown into Quebec from France to help the
00:14 Canadians combat the wildfires that have been scorching the country.
00:19 After several days of training, they're now ready to join the effort.
00:23 "This preparation was absolutely essential and that's why we haven't been able to go
00:30 out into the field until now because there's so much information we needed to take in,
00:35 safety information, information about the equipment so that we can intervene in the
00:39 most efficient way."
00:40 They'll be focusing their efforts on the 299 fire in Quebec that's already burned over
00:48 7,000 hectares.
00:50 That's the equivalent of over 10,000 football pitches.
00:54 The French are no strangers to wildfires, having experienced particularly destructive
00:58 blazes last summer - a trend that's expected to worsen in the coming years due to climate
01:03 change.
01:04 "We can't work in the same way as we do at home, given that the topography and vegetation
01:11 are completely different.
01:13 But I think that this will give us a better understanding of the forest fire phenomenon
01:18 and we'll likely have some feedback to bring home to France in two or three weeks' time."
01:27 Canada is enduring its most devastating spring fire season in its history.
01:32 Firefighters in Quebec have regained control of some of the wildfires though, sparking
01:36 hope that the worst is over.