The approach to Le Porge tells the story before the town comes into view: a road running through a scarred, almost end-of-days scene, with blackened trees standing like sentries on either side.
It is a grim signpost to the destruction beyond.
Le Porge has become the focal point of the fierce wildfires that swept across the region over the past week, leaving pockets of land still smoking in their wake.
After the alarm was sounded on Friday, residents were ordered out and the town was quickly evacuated.
The town was cleared after the alarm was raised
Those who left have since been living with the upheaval in evacuation centres, hotels, or the spare rooms of friends and relatives.
For Benjamin Fusco, who came back to discover his own house had escaped the flames, that uncertainty is painful to witness.
“It is emotional. By chance our house hasn’t been touched,” he said.
“We can’t begin to feel what it is like to lose your home, but we can see how hard it is for our neighbours,” he added.
Fusco also voiced doubts about whether enough firefighters had been sent to confront the blaze.
Benjamin Fusco came back to Le Porge and found his home had not been damaged
“When we returned we were shocked to see how few firemen there were. We were expecting way more,” he said.
Others in Le Porge have raised the same concern.
Earlier this week, AFP reported that residents at a public meeting accused authorities of concentrating resources on Cap Ferret — a peninsula associated with luxury properties — instead of places such as Le Porge.
Officials, however, have stood by their handling of the emergency, citing the sustained and difficult work carried out by firefighting teams.
They said shifting winds during the first phase of the fire made it extremely difficult to foresee that the blaze would swing back in the direction of Le Porge.
Volunteers including Herve Fougeroux are helping with efforts to put out remaining fires
For the moment, Le Porge and the surrounding countryside remain vulnerable to fresh flare-ups.
Across the area, a large community effort is focused on soaking the ground and stamping out lingering danger. Volunteers such as Herve Fougeroux are moving through the burned landscape looking for smoke, carrying buckets and sprayers so they can tackle even the smallest hot spot.
“We take the water from the lake then we fight root fires,” he said. “One by one – we do what we can.”
Still, he knows the work ahead is vast.
“It could take months. It’s exhausting,” he added.
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