French PM Lecornu Booed by Residents on Visit to Fire-Ravaged Southwest
Residents booed Sébastien Lecornu after wildfires burned 42,000 hectares, forced more than 220,000 evacuations and destroyed 183 homes in Le Porge.
- On Monday, August 17, 2026, about 200 residents dressed in black jeered French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu as he arrived in Le Porge, a Gironde town devastated by wildfires, shouting anti-government slogans.
- Wildfires that burned through 42,000 hectares destroyed 183 homes in late July and early August, forcing the evacuation of more than 220,000 residents and tourists near Bordeaux.
- Riot police blocked access for protesters seeking "truth, transparency, and justice," according to organizer Ludivine Daurignac; 65-year-old pensioner Tony Veiga said, "It really amounts to treating us as if we don't matter."
- After leaving Le Porge, Lecornu met local officials in Merignac, stating, "We have absolutely nothing to hide regarding how fire protection operations have been conducted over the past few weeks."
- The Prime Minister had previously toured the municipality on Sunday, August 16, 2026, with Mayor Martial Zaninetti in an unannounced visit that took place without press cameras.
38 Articles
38 Articles
The French head of government Sébastien Lecornu faces up to the rage of the inhabitants. Some see him as the better presidential candidate.
In the midst of the reconstruction, the inhabitants of Porge, a commune affected by the fires, face daily the destruction of their village. On the spot, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced this Monday measures to simplify their efforts and try to calm their anger "Honteux! Shameful!" It is under the hueas of a crowd of inhabitants of Porge, who dressed in black for the occasion, that French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu arrived …
The commune of Porge, 3,500 inhabitants, paid the heaviest toll on fire which travelled more than 40,000 hectares in Gironde, with 183 houses destroyed.
The French Prime Minister announced 100 million euros in financial aid, especially for the reconstruction of houses destroyed by the flames.
The Prime Minister tried to calm the anger of the inhabitants of the region, who booed him this Monday, August 17 when he arrived in Porge, one of the most devastated communes in the fire.
"Where is it?" Residents of the Porge blame Sébastien Lecornu, among other things, for not coming to meet them.
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