Cigarette butt could have caused wildfire

The fire has spread across 800 hectares since Saturday in Saint-Cannat, close to Aix-en-Provence.

More than 800 firefighters have been working with the aid of 200 vehicles, as well as helicopters and aerial firefighters, to combat the fire.

Reinforcements were called in from the Rhône-Alpes, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Alpes-Maritimes, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes.

“The theory that a cigarette butt started this fire is currently the most likely, since the fire started at the roadside,” said Rémy Avon, vice-procureur in Aix. “The punishment for disposing of a butt end that causes a fire, even without intention, is three years of imprisonment and a €45,000 fine," he added.