The smoke from the Saumos and Sainte-Hélène fire has invaded much of the Gironde. The visibility on the roads is very low this Thursday morning. Particle concentration thresholds should be exceeded during the day, Atmo alert.
Many Girondists woke up this Thursday morning to dense air, difficult to breathe, amidst the fog and fumes generated by the fire that is still going on in the Médoc.
In Sainte-Hélène, very close to the fire, visibility was very poor at dawn, making travel dangerous, as evidenced by the mayor of the city, Lionel Montillaud, on social networks.
As for the visibility on the roads around the fire, the Prefecture of the Gironde is launching a invite to prudence for motorists.
The Girondins testify to the same phenomenon observed since then, Salaunes, Langon, from the metropolis of Bordeaux also to Floirac, Mérignac, Villenave d’Ornon, Pessac …
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Atmo New Aquitaine explains this phenomenon with the increase in the concentration of polluting particles and with the direction of the winds, coming from the west.
Thursday, in the Bordeaux conurbation, measurements of air quality are scarce. These results come from the department’s eight measuring stations.
Some stations recorded peaks of 112 micrograms of polluting particles per cubic meter of air, well above the warning threshold set at 80 micrograms per m3 of air.
Beware the same, Atmo employs 24-hour averages of pollution particles to make the interpretation of these results relevant. And these averages are expected to skyrocket today to cross the alert threshold.
Same for me Friday because the westerly winds will persist.
This persistence for several days led Atmo Nouvelle Aquitaine to alert the Prefecture of Gironde.
Poor air quality will be felt on Thursday and certainly also Friday in the Bordeaux conurbation and in much of the Gironde department.
Mardi, the wind pushed the plume of smoke in particular towards the north-east, affecting the air quality for short periods in the agglomerations of Angoulême (16) and Saint-Junien (87).
Wednesdaythe plumes hit the agglomerations of La Rochelle and Niort during the morning.
In the night from Tuesday to Wednesdaythe smoke had crossed the Bordeaux conurbation from midnight to 3 in the morning, but the regulatory thresholds had not been exceeded.
In areas close to fires
Health authorities strongly recommend wearing a protective filter mask of type FFP2 or FFP3.
In the most remote areas:
- limit the time spent outdoors,
- limit strenuous physical activities outdoors,
- closely monitor people at risk.
Employees who do physical work outdoors can therefore be subjected to long exposure, increasing the risk of irritation. Their employers are advised to be vigilant and, if necessary, to contact their occupational health service.
For a single feeling of bad smell and / or irritation of the respiratory tract superiors, the ARS specifies that it is not necessary to contact the attending physician, in call 15
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