Wildfires near Bordeaux force evacuation of ArianeGroup rocket plant and Laser Megajoule facility

Large forest fires spreading around Bordeaux in southwestern France have approached several key components of the French nuclear‑deterrence and aerospace infrastructure. Authorities ordered the precautionary evacuation of ArianeGroup plants in Le Haillan and Saint‑Médard‑en‑Jalles, where engines for the M51 submarine‑launched ballistic missile are manufactured. The nearby Laser Megajoule research centre, used for high‑energy simulations supporting France’s nuclear arsenal, was also shut down, though it stores no radioactive material.

French military units and emergency services have been deployed to protect the installations, establishing firebreaks and removing vegetation around the sites. Additional aerospace facilities, including Dassault Aviation’s Rafale wing‑assembly plant in Mérignac and a test‑range site in Biscarrosse, were placed on alert but have not been directly hit. No injuries or radiation hazards have been reported.

The incidents highlight the vulnerability of strategic defence assets to natural disasters, prompting heightened crisis‑management measures by the French Ministry of the Armed Forces and the nuclear‑energy regulator (CEA).