In the south of France, a large contingent of firefighters are battling a blaze that has led to the preventive evacuation of several campsites housing around 3,000 tourists. Numerous trees and shrubs were on fire in the Pyrenees-Orientales department. A fire of great violence is raging, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin announced Monday evening. He called on residents and holidaymakers to be extremely vigilant.
The fire broke out on Monday afternoon between Saint-André and the famous seaside resort of Argelès-sur-Mer on the Mediterranean Sea. The site of the fire is west of the town of Perpignan, not far from the Spanish border. Locally there are no larger contiguous forest areas.
About 3000 campers evacuated
The fight against the flames continues, said Environment Minister Christophe Béchu late in the evening. So far, four campsites with almost 3,000 holidaymakers have been evacuated. The fire brigade uses numerous means on land and from the air to get the flames under control. Due to the drought and strong winds, the risk of fire spread increased.
As prefect Rodrigue Furcy said in the evening, 480 hectares of nature reserve have already been burned. The fire is not yet under control, but the situation is starting to improve. The hope is to contain the flames to an area where they pose no threat to residential buildings. A river course can help as a natural barrier to the fire. The wind is currently driving the flames away from Argelès-sur-Mer. Firefighting operations continue throughout the night.
“Catastrophic Situation”
“It is a catastrophic situation,” the mayor of Saint-André, Samuel Moli, told France Bleu. “We are facing a fire unlike anything we’ve seen before,” he said. “Our community has been hit hard and there is a lot of damage.” Homes and a supermarket were evacuated. A gymnasium and a large multipurpose room were opened for the evacuees.
Source: Krone
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