Bushfires in northern New Caledonia, forests destroyed

Patrick Decloitre, Correspondent French Pacific Desk


Bushfire risk high in New Caledonia . Photo: Association des Sapeurs Pompiers du SIVM Nord

New Caledonia is gripped by a series of bushfires, especially the north-western tip of the main island of Grande Terre, with local firefighters strongly suspicious of criminal motives.

Since early September, local firefighters have been trying to contain several bushfires in the northern region, especially near the small towns of Koumac, Pouembout and Kaala-Gomen, in the Northern Province.

On Tuesday, local government President Louis Mapou declared a level 2 emergency situation on the communes of Koumac and Kaala-Gomen, where fire and emergency services (mostly volunteer) teams were still struggling to extinguish several blazes.

At least one house was reported to have been destroyed, and over one thousand hectares of forests and bushes had already gone up in flames, along the main provincial road RT1.

The road has had to be closed on several occasions, local media reported.

New Caledonian fire-fighters on site in Pouembout, extreme north-west of the main island of Grande Terre, on 7 September 2024. Photo: NC la 1ere
'Not natural origin'

The volunteers have also received backup from the local civil security services.

Warrant officer Kevin Leclerc, who heads the local firefighting services, told local radio RRB that he no longer believes those fires are of "natural origin".

"We must stop believing that it is of natural origin. These fires have been set alight," he said.

"We do not really understand what game the arsonist is playing, but he sure does a lot of damage.

"And only with everyone's vigilance will we perhaps stop this. Because we are really in the risky period of the year, plus the weather, this really means we cannot play with fire at the moment."

But Civil Security director Frédéric Marchi-Leccia had a less definitive approach, recalling that winds, scorching and dry weather remained a contributing factor to fan the fires.

"What is true is that most of those fires are of human origin, voluntary or not," he told RRB earlier this month.

Bushfire in Kaala-Gomen along the territorial road RP1 on 17 September 2024. Photo: Supplied

He said he did not know whether there is a link with the insurrectional situation with arson and looting, especially in the capital Nouméa.

But he feared that as a consequence of the current unrest, with firemen often called for urban fires, the civil security services could become over-stretched and "overwhelmed".

This year again, he has called for reinforcements.

Some firefighting units have arrived over the past four months, but because of the unrest, they are more specialised in urban, building fires.

"So it's not the same as bushfires," he pointed out.

"Our firemen, civil security and communal ones, volunteers, they are very brave, they are resilient, but they are tired, and this makes me fear the risk of human accident.

"Our means are not stretchable forever. So at one stage, things could get out of control. And then the situation could turn catastrophic."

Earlier this month, several other fires had already prompted another intervention from local firefighters, who managed to extinguish the blaze, but some 40 hectares of bushes had already been destroyed.

Last weekend, there was another wave of fires that had to be extinguished in nearby Poum.

Altogether, emergency services have listed over fifteen towns and villages in the region as "very high risk" zones.

During the previous season, which ended in March 2024 and was also marked by thousands of hectares of vegetation going up in flames, New Caledonia had to request reinforcement from mainland France firefighters.

Several individuals have been charged with arson for last season's fires.

The seasonal trade winds are also not helping, as New Caledonia's north has entered its driest season of the year a few weeks ago, and August has been recorded this year as one of the hottest in decades.

But just like last season, firemen have sometimes witnessed scenes where, on several occasions, not long after they had just extinguished a fire, it was re-ignited at the same location or nearby.