Tarn-et-Garonne: the new Villebrumier fire and rescue center inaugurated

“Today is a special day.” It was with these words that Michel Weill began his speech. He, the President of the Departmental Council, presents himself as the president of the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS), the boss of the firefighters. As an aside, this grandfather of a firefighter confides to you that at the start of his mandate, he toured the barracks and that in that of Villebrumier “here we were the worst off”. Goodbye to the old center dating from 1955 and make way for this new equipment.

An inauguration with great fanfare

At 11 a.m. the ceremony begins. Sébastien Tomas, deputy captain to the center head, directs the maneuver. Raising the flag at the stele which honors the firefighters of France and on which their motto “courage and dedication” is also engraved. Then Michel Weill, Bénédicte Martineau, Colonel Olivier Théron, director of the SDIS, and Christophe Dewitte, captain of the corps, review the firefighters, former firefighters, young firefighters (JSP), other corps leaders. Then a JSP, a reservist firefighter and an active firefighter come forward to lay a wreath at the stele.

The personalities and elected officials of Orgueil, Nohic, Reyniès, Saint-Nauphary, Varennes and Villebrumier, municipalities protected by this new barracks, are grouped around Michel Weill and Bénédicte Martineau. They advance towards the tricolor ribbon, take the golden scissors handed to them. It’s 11:12 a.m., the ribbon is cut, the barracks are inaugurated!

Christophe Dewitte then becomes a guide to the place. Everything goes there, the overflow room for crisis situations, the movable partition separating the men/women locker rooms according to their number in the body, the disinfection room integrated into the hangar of the victim rescue vehicle, the foyer of the ‘friendly and its adjoining cellar. “It’s well designed”, “it’s well thought out”, we hear. The locals are unanimous. Colonel Théron will confirm that the final works (fence, gate, 10,000 liter tank for rainwater and parking) will be carried out under management in 2025. They are part of an overall program concerning the new Caussade barracks (inaugurated in November), Corbarieu (first studies in progress), then Montech.

296 releases in 2023

After this visit, Michel Weill will highlight in his speech the spirit that drives the firefighters. It will list the equipment but will focus on the 296 interventions carried out in 2023, because “296 times you answered the call”. He talks about dedication and commitment and will end with “Long live the firefighters”.

Bénédicte Martineau then walks towards the microphone. She talks about proximity, because deploying civil security as close as possible to the population is a priority of the State. To finish, everyone shares this beautiful moment around a buffet. You come across Ginette Lacaze, daughter of Michel Lacaze, first captain in 1955. You see Pierre Blanc, the mayor, showing everyone this photo of the first 20 firefighters in 1955. You chat with Laurent Orlhiac, previous captain. You think of these 135 firefighters who have given so much since this corps existed.

A final image comes to you. On one side of the tricolor ribbon, a JSP carries the cushion with the scissors while another holds one end of the ribbon. At the other end of the tricolor ribbon, Fernand Tapiolas, 96 years old, in firefighter uniform, the only survivor of the first 20. A bridge between the two barracks, more than that a transmission between generations. Long live all firefighters.