This is unheard of since the 2nd World War : the Economat des Armées has just started the construction of a giant military camp on the Reuilly lawn in the south-east of Paris, the camp of Corporal Alain Mimoun, named after the most successful French athlete who was also a soldier.
A construction that covers a triple challenge.
Firstly, the scale of the project: this camp will accommodate nearly 5000 soldiers who will be mobilised this summer in Paris to participate in the security of the Olympic Games, i.e. more than double the number of personnel supported in the largest camp operated in OPEX.
Secondly, the deadlines: the EdA has exactly 65 days to set up a structure of more than 30,000 square metres – which is the size of the Paris Air Show, which was set up in six months. No less than 14 metal-textile structures will be installed. They will be organised into dormitories with 12 to 18 places – 331 dormitories in total – and supplemented by 70 sanitary modules with showers, toilets and washbasins.
Finally, the complexity of the deployment site: in addition to the logistical difficulty of carrying out an operation of this magnitude in the heart of Paris, the Reuilly lawn is a site that is doubly classified as a heritage and environmental site, which implies compliance with draconian rules.
All of the camp’s life support is provided by the EdA, which deploys a staff of 120 on site. The services include 24/7 continuous catering, taking into account the security activities carried out by the soldiers. They also cover leisure opportunities (bars, wifi).
Finally, they include the laundering of the soldiers’ belongings and the maintenance of the camp (maintenance of structures, cleaning of the premises, evacuation of waste, pest control, etc.).
On the Reuilly pitch, the EdA will therefore provide the support it usually provides to soldiers on operations abroad, but on an XXL camp. A pride equal to the challenge to be met by the establishment, whose entire team is fully mobilized.