Wildfires burn in Drôme, Lozère as new heatwave brings renewed risks
High temperatures increase concerns over blazes in north of country
A fire in the Drôme department continues to burn today after destroying another 50 hectares of land on Sunday.
The blaze has now been burning for a week and has destroyed 370 hectares, said the prefecture in an update on Sunday (August 9) evening.
Four firefighters were injured fighting the blaze – including one who was taken to hospital – bringing the total number of people injured tackling the Drôme fire to 11. It comes as four firefighters have lost their lives this wildfire season.
Elsewhere, a blaze in Lozère is also ongoing after burning over 150 hectares on Sunday.
The fire is thought to have started after a car caught fire on a communal pathway near Massegros-Causses-Gorges (around 140km north-west of Montpellier).
Two small villages nearby were evacuated.
A fire in Gironde – the site of the devastating July wildfire that burned 42,000 hectares – that began on Sunday was quickly put under control (fixé) by firefighters on Sunday.
Beginning in Saint-Jean-d’Illac, the fire was quickly attended by up to 100 firefighters and two anti-fire aircrafts, burning only two hectares before being brought under control.
More fires to come?
State forecaster Météo France has placed 17 departments on a heightened alert for the risk of forest fires today, rising to 32 on Tuesday (August 11).
Many of these departments are located in the north, which have seen a lack of rainfall (storms that crossed the south over the weekend were largely absent from skies north of the Loire) leading to dried-out vegetation.
With the heatwave set to last until the weekend, there are concerns that the threat of wildfires will remain high.
You can see a live map of forest fires on the feuxdeforet.fr website, with a screenshot below showing conditions as of 10:00 on Monday.
Red shows ongoing blazes, orange fires that have been reported but yet to be confirmed, and black recently extinguished blazes.
Those in areas with confirmed blazes or at heightened risk of fires should check if rules have been altered in their area.
Restrictions aimed at reducing wildfire risk include closing off forested areas to the public, limits on barbecues, or restrictions on works such as property construction or renovation.
Limits are usually available on prefecture websites or social media pages.
