Following the numerous fires already in progress, a new outbreak broke out during the night of Tuesday July 25 to Wednesday July 26 in the town of Bormes-les-Mimosas.
More than 1 hectares went up in smoke and more than 300 firefighters were mobilized to try to contain the fire. More than 500 people also had to be evacuated and we obviously received numerous private messages asking if this tragedy had affected the facilities of the French Monster Yamaha Tech10 team established in the town.
We therefore contacted Hervé Poncharal who took a few minutes to respond to us.
Hervé Poncharal : “first of all, I would like to thank Internet users because it touches me to know that they are interested and concerned about the evolution of things in the town of Bormes-les-Mimosas in which our installations are located, and where most of the team lives.
What happened is truly a tragedy, but we won't necessarily talk too much about it because it doesn't directly concern MotoGP. As you know, and as a certain number of Internet users know, the fact of settling there was linked to a lifestyle choice in relation to the marvelous nature of this corner of the Mediterranean coast. Most of the team members do a lot of cycling, mainly mountain biking, in the middle of all this Maures massif. It was truly sublime and we had a lot of fun riding there. All this has disappeared in smoke and it is therefore more than heartbreaking for all the inhabitants of the region.
But coming back to the Tech3 installations, they are located in an activity zone where there is no vegetation around. So there was no particular problem. We were surrounded by smoke and we could see the flames, but the closest ones were about 700 or 800 meters away. Even though it wasn't very far, there was no vegetation, so there was never really any significant risk.
In addition, all the vehicles, the semi-trailers which contain the MotoGP, the Moto2 and the hospitality of the riders, everything is already in the Czech Republic where we left them after the German Grand Prix. So there is no problem on that side and we will all be with our equipment, operational for the Grand Prix of the Czech Republic, even if we will obviously have a big knot in our stomach, because you have understood that well, What happened is emotionally a huge loss. Everything is gone. Not only the trees and flowers, but also all the wildlife, from wild boars to turtles. All. »
We know that you are particularly modest, and you are not going to tell us about it yourself, but it seems that your team, under the direction of Guy Coulon, participated in the preservation of a few isolated houses in the woods by felling trees. …
“Yes, there is a group of houses which is very close to the workshop and which are in the forest. And, among other things, because they were not the only ones, part of the Tech3 team led by Guy Coulon went to help the firefighters by making fire breaks by felling trees to prevent the fire from spreading. spread by vegetation. They also installed motor pumps in the pools and were great. There was Guy, of course, but also Éric, Fabien, my brother Jérôme, my daughter and many others. Everyone helped, whether it was making these famous firewalls or holding the hoses, for more than 20 hours. And they managed to save a few houses. »
Today, can we say that the situation has stabilized?
“Yes, it is stabilized, but the fire is not out. There are still glowing stumps and embers, and the wind is not over. In particular, there are gusts which mean that there are non-stop repeats. And as the major means are no longer there, particularly the air means, we really have to be careful because a recovery can quickly turn into a big risk. So whatever happens, before it's all over, I think it'll be at least a week. »
Thank you Hervé, and we obviously wish you good luck in this difficult moment!
