Disturbing resurgence of fires in the oases of Guelmim-Oued Noun

A week after a large fire destroyed more than 1,300 palm trees in the oasis of the commune of Taghjijt, the province of Guelmim, another similar fire broke out on Sunday in that of the commune of Zag, in the province of Assa-Zag.

The flames have extended to a large part of the palm grove close to homes, reducing many palm trees, blackened by fire, and also destroying food crops planted between the trees, indicates everyday life Al Akhbar in its edition of Tuesday, May 6.

Local residents tried to master the fire as soon as it was launched with rudimentary, but without success, due to the extent of the flames.

The firefighters, elements of the royal armed forces of the military garrison, the local authorities and the auxiliary forces quickly went there. Reinforcements have also been dispatched from the city of Assa, despite geographic distance.

The fire was only mastered after great efforts, the intervention teams having worked until late in the night. The rapid propagation of flames was favored by the sharp increase in temperatures in this border town in the East and by the dry winds of “chergui».

The problem of fires which ravage oases in the region of Guelmim-Oued Noun and in other oasian areas remains recurrent, raising many questions about the means of preventing them and on the implementation of anticipatory approaches to protect goods and populations.

These fires, now frequent throughout the year in different oasis in the region, have become a real nightmare for the inhabitants as well as for the local and regional authorities.

Each summer revives fears with the resumption of oasis fires, which requires urgent research of effective solutions to fight against this scourge.

And this, despite the adoption by the Guelmim-Oued Noun Regional Council of an agreement to protect the oases of the region from recurring fires, an initiative that responds to the growing concern of farmers.

This agreement provides for the implementation of a project to develop Oasian spaces and fire prevention, with an overall budget of 66,490,200 dirhams, including 30 million funded by the Regional Council.

However, the fire problem persists, and the concrete effects of this convention are slow to be felt on the ground.

It aims, in its words, to face the risk of fire regularly affecting several oasis, threatening the means of subsistence of dozens of farmers and degrading the Oasian ecosystem.

Another agreement has also been adopted to mitigate the effects of natural disasters in the region, between the Regional Council and the National Agency for the Development of Oasian Zones and the Arganier, with the aim of protecting oases from fires, strengthening the speed of intervention, and preserving residents, as well as public and private goods, against dangers related to natural disasters and other incidents.