Saturday, November 30, the centers of Veuzain-sur-Loire, Monteaux-Mesland and Valloire-sur-Cisse celebrated Sainte-Barbe in the presence of Bernard Pillefer senator, departmental elected officials and mayors. Around forty firefighters participated in this ceremony marked by solidarity, dedication and courage. All the speakers underlined the importance of volunteer firefighters within the rescue system.
Catherine Lhérier insisted on the involvement of the Department and the municipalities, which, despite a delicate budgetary context, provide firefighters with the necessary means to accomplish their mission in complete safety. The consideration of the present and future consequences of climate change by Sdis 41 was also underlined.
Vital recruitment for the next generation
The dynamism of the departmental section of 195 young firefighters was highlighted. However, this future succession must be supplemented by the recruitment of new volunteers. In fact, all centers record an average non-response rate during the day of around 25 to 31%, due to lack of availability due to the professional activities of volunteer staff. In these cases, another center, further away, takes over and manages the emergency response.
The ceremony was the occasion for the presentation of medals and ranks.
Medal of Honor: gold level for 30 years of service: master corporal Stéphane Foucault, silver level for 20 years of service: chief warrant officer Mathieu Martin, bronze level for 10 years of service: corporal Quentin Boyer (CS Veuzain-sur-Loire), corporal Yann Lefrançois (CPI Valloire-sur-Cisse), sapper Nicolas Leroux (CS Veuzain-sur-Loire).
Grades : Sergeant Quentin Boyer, Master Corporal Yann Lefrançois and Corporal Christophe Boyer (CS Veuzain-sur-Loire).
Key figures
- Veuzain-sur-Loire Rescue Center: 32 volunteer firefighters, 486 interventions including 381 personal rescues, 44 traffic accidents, 37 miscellaneous and 29 fires in 2023.
- Valloire-sur-Cisse first response center: 10 volunteer firefighters, 165 outings including 117 personal rescues, 16 accidents on public roads, 9 fires and 23 miscellaneous operations (floods, etc.).
- Monteaux-Mesland first intervention center: 15 firefighters, 105 interventions, including 65 person rescues, 14 people rescues, 9 public road accidents, 10 miscellaneous interventions and 7 fires.
