The Gers fire service is preparing to take delivery of ten new vehicles, representing a major upgrade to its fire-fighting fleet. These vehicles will be used to boost the service’s capacity to respond to forest fires. Indeed, this initiative marks a major upgrade fire safety and follows on from a grant awarded by the Ministry of the Interior. Indeed, 2023 saw eight emergency call-outs across five neighbouring departments; the fire service was called upon despite the year being considered ‘less busy’ in terms of fires compared with the previous year.
In addition, the Minister for the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, has allocated a grant of 1.48 million euros to the Gers in 2023. This is intended to fund the purchase of ten new vehicles. The first vehicles are expected to be delivered by the end of 2024.
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The President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, had confirmed this grant in October 2022. This forms part of a €150 million fund dedicated to firefighting. This sum will help to support the Gers Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS 32). However, they will be responsible for the remainder of the investment, amounting to one million euros.
Thus, the SDIS 32 plans to use this grant to purchase new tankers forest fires (CCF). They will be specially designed for urban environments and fitted with four-wheel drive. The order for the ten vehicles will be spread over four years due to production lead times. Deliveries are therefore scheduled to take place annually between late 2024 and the following years. Colonel Jean-Louis Ferres emphasises the need for this investment plan, pointing out that it will take some time and that it forms an integral part of the SDIS 32 budget to cover the remaining share of the cost. Finally, the production lead times, estimated at between 18 and 24 months, should enable the SDIS 32 to gradually receive “two or three vehicles a year” over the four-year period.