Firefighters who helped contain France’s largest wildfire in decades were on high alert on Friday, August 8, because of forecasts of very high temperatures that could reignite the blaze in the south of the country.
The fire in France’s Aude wine country quickly spread over more than 160 square kilometers over three days in hot and dry weather, forcing hundreds of residents to flee their homes. One person died at home, and at least 21 others were injured, including 16 firefighters, according to the local authorities, who added that they need to remain vigilant throughout the weekend, because temperatures were expected to rise above 30°C during another heat wave.
Aude administrator Christian Pouget said some 1,000 people have not yet been able to return to their homes after the fire swept through 15 municipalities in the Corbières mountain region, destroying or damaging at least 36 homes. Local authorities also estimated that “800 to 900 hectares” of vineyards have been lost.
Around 2,000 people evacuated
Some 1,300 homes were still without electricity on Friday morning after infrastructure was extensively damaged, the Aude prefecture said. Residents have been warned not to return home without authorization, as many roads remain blocked and dangerous. Local authorities have said that around 2,000 evacuated people are still unable to return home, and those forced to flee have been housed in emergency shelters across 17 municipalities.
Many fled to the village of Tuchan when the fire started on Tuesday, its mayor, Beatrice Bertrand, told The Associated Press (AP). “We have received and hosted over 200 people. We gave them food, thanks to local businesses who opened their stores despite it being very late,” Bertrand said. “Civil Protection brought us beds. And also, the local villagers offered their homes to welcome them. It was their first night here, and many were shocked and scared.”
Wildfires intensifying due to climate change
Regional prosectors have said investigations are underway to determine what sparked the fire.
Authorities said the fire was the largest recorded since France’s national fire database was created in 2006. France’s environmental transition minister, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, went even further, calling the blaze the worst since 1949 and linking it to climate change.
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The Mediterranean basin has seen multiple large fires this summer. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. Last month, a wildfire that reached the southern port of Marseille, France’s second-largest city, left around 300 people injured.
Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
