As of last week, fires around the Atlantic village of Arcachon and another near Landiras – by the region of Graves – have caused 12,000 people to be evacuated from their homes and local campsites.

According to recent press releases from the Gironde prefect, approximately 1700 firefighters from all over France are battling the flames. As of July 19, the two fires had burned nearly 19,300 hectares of forest in Gironde. Despite the significant ground and air resources that have been committed to quenching the flames, the situation has still not been resolved.

The burned area includes 19,300 hectares in 6,500 in La Teste-de-Buch and 12,800 in Landiras in the district of Langon. Evacuations of the area are in progress and "the presence of smoke from these fires and the smell of burnt wood were perceptible on the Bordeaux metropolis as well as outside the Gironde".

Many roads, the release noted, remain closed and the damaged forest areas are currently closed to the public during the summer high season. This includes the incredibly lush 26,000-hectare La Teste-de-Buch wilderness area – one of the largest in France – that has long been a favorite for local hikers, bikers and walkers outside the town of Arcachon, close to the Atlantic Ocean.

The Gironde region's press releases the previous day noted that the situation was critical and that conditions were deteriorating because of strong winds. Weill adds that the fire in Landiras was intentionally set, however he did not elaborate further on how it occurred. He notes that the fires in La Teste-de-Buch were started by a truck that set on fire and are now sadly tearing through a 2000-year-old forest.

Patrick Anderson, a captain of a local boat called Des Hommes et des Mers, who does tours of the area, said the situation was sad as many of the trees that burned were more than a 100 years old. What is more, he notes, "they are the lungs of our region".

Vincent Bache-Gabrielsen, the general manager of Château Pédesclaux in Paulliac on the Left Bank, is quite far from the fires. He added that since veraison had not yet started in the vineyards of Bordeaux, he hoped that smoke taint would not be an issue for the grapes in the area's numerous wine regions at the time of harvest. He added that it is also very premature to talk about the harvest, both in terms of volume and quality and the prices of wines.

"For the moment the vineyards are not affected and no vines were burned," shared Cécile Ha, a public relations spokesperson for Counseil Interprofessional du Vin de Bordeaux (CIBV). She adds that "the wind direction is such that the smoke from the fires moves away from the vineyard. There is, to date, no fear of the impact of the smoke."

Jean Hoefliger, a consultant for JH Wineconsulting Inc. in Rutherford, California – who studied enology in Switzerland and consults in Bordeaux – doesn't believe the smoke has affected the vineyards close to Bordeaux: yet. He says that it is testament to "how resilient vines are". However, he adds that while this fall's harvest may remain on schedule, but given the current temperatures "the plant closes its activity and protects itself. So, you are usually delayed in waiting for the plant to restart its ripening process." So, it is yet to be seen how the current fires may affect the harvest

He adds that California has actually experienced more fire damage to vineyards in recent years than most of France. He notes that in the long run the current state of the fires, if they don't become more intense, should not really impact local vineyards as they are engulfing forests at this point.

Although Youmna Asseily, an owner of Château Biac in Langoiran, said she could see the smoke from 40 kilometers away and that the winds were spreading it everywhere. She called it the equivalent of "the effects of old smog in the 1960s in London, which is very bad for breathing".

She added her concern that the firefighters might not be able to control the fires as so many of them are "burning at the same time and no there is no rain in sight. It already is an ecological disaster not seen since the 1940s. The temperatures have shot down by 15 degrees today, which provided a bit of relief in the area. But we would need a major downpour."

As for tourism, all bets are off as to if these fires will discourage tourists from coming to Bordeaux, visiting its wineries and enjoying its seafood and beautiful forests and beaches. "Fires of this kind have been few and far between in this region of France." Weill notes that there have been no "fires in the Gironde since 30 years. We never thought it was possible … usually, it's Spain, Portugal or the South of France, not the South-West."

Unfortunately, situations like this might become more common. As of now, "Europe is experiencing one of the top four hottest summers on record and fires are in Spain, Portugal and France and killed so far around 600 people", notes Hoefliger.  

Captain Anderson notes that in the region around Arcachon "Many campsites and hotels have been evacuated." So unfortunately, he expressed concern that the fires will have a negative impact on tourism. We can only hope for the best for one of the most beautiful, and historic, regions in all of France.

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