South of France wildfire: one dead, motorway closed as blaze rages on

A woman has died and several others have been left injured after a massive wildfire broke out in Aude (Occitanie) yesterday.

The fire is the biggest of the summer so far and has burned more than 14,000 hectares of land around the Corbières hills, an area larger than the size of Paris.

In its latest update this morning, the Aude prefecture said the fire remains ‘very active’.

Around 1,500 firefighters worked overnight to tackle the fire, with the aid of several water aircraft. 

They have been reinforced by nearly 500 firefighters, trucks, and aircraft from surrounding departments this morning. 

French Prime Minister François Bayrou is set to visit the department this afternoon. 

Weather conditions are similar to yesterday – warm and dry, with winds of up to 60 km/h – which will make it difficult to restrict the fire, say authorities.

At least 25 homes have been damaged by the blaze and 2,500 are without electricity, as more than a dozen communes in the area are impacted. Holidaymakers in nearby campsites were evacuated soon after the fires began. 

Several major roads remain closed including the A9 in both directions, and the Lézignan-Corbières exit of the A61. 

A live interactive map of local roads affected can be found here. 

The cause of the fire is as yet unknown, however it started on a riverbank in the Ribaute commune around 16:00.

The prefecture has called for people in the area to take a common sense approach – letting officers to their work unimpeded, keeping emergency lines free, and staying up to date with information from official sources only and not spreading false information. 

You can read the prefecture’s full morning update below. 

Aude and the neighbouring Pyrénées-Orientales and Hérault departments are on the second-highest alert level for forest fires today, according to the risk map of state forecaster Météo France. 

This is set to drop to a tier-two yellow level tomorrow.

One person still missing, several firefighters injured 

The confirmed victim of the blaze died in her house in the Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, with two other people in the commune also seriously injured and taken to hospital in a life-threatening condition. 

The woman was scared due to the intensity of the fire and did not want to leave her house despite attempts to evacuate her, mayor of the commune Xavier de Volontat told French media. She returned back inside her house and could not be saved before it was destroyed.

Seven firefighters have also been injured in the blaze. 

The death toll may rise, as there are reports of at least one other person missing. 

Rapid spread of fire

The fire spread extremely quickly due to the landscape where the blaze began. 

Strong winds fanned flames onto dry, Mediterranean vegetation and brush, exacerbated by highly-flammable plants and trees such as rosemary and pines.

"It was enormous," said Gilles, a vineyard owner in  Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse to FranceInfo.

When he first saw the fire "it had not yet touched the village...[but soon] covered it in ten minutes. The fire must be three or four kilometers wide."

"In my opinion, they're not going to be able to stop it anytime soon. Plus, the wind is pushing it... There are only pine trees in its path. As long as the fire has something to burn, it will burn."