Status: 08/12/2022 1:25 p.m
Around 1,100 firefighters are fighting the flames on the southern French Atlantic coast. They are supported, among other things, by emergency services from Germany. The authorities are now reporting the first successes – and have further fears.
In the fight against the huge forest fire near Bordeaux in southwestern France, the fire brigade has reported a first success. The fire in the Gironde and Landes departments did not spread much during the night, said Arcachon’s chief administrator, Ronan Léaustic.
Flames could flare up again
However, Léaustic did not give the all-clear: the fire brigade was facing another difficult day, he explained. Furthermore, “extreme vigilance” is required. The authorities fear that the flames could flare up again because of the high temperatures and low humidity. The risk of this is very high – the responsible authority said.
Forest fire near Hostens, in the Gironde region of southwest France.
Image: via REUTERS
Fire destroyed square kilometers of forest
That had already happened on Tuesday: the fire was a fire that had flared up again and had already raged in mid-July. At that time it had taken more than a week for the fire brigade to get the fire under control. There is a suspicion of arson.
The fire has serious consequences for nature and people: 10,000 people had to be brought to safety, some of them for the second time. From Thursday to Friday there were no further evacuations, as Léaustic said. The fire in the Gironde and the neighboring Landes department has burned more than 74 square kilometers of land since Tuesday, according to the fire department.
Support also comes from Germany
The 1,100 firefighters from France are now supported by more than 360 firefighters from other European countries. According to the French authorities, 65 firefighters from Germany with 24 vehicles arrived in the forest fire area in the evening. Further support came from Romania, Poland and Austria. Greece and Italy are helping out with fire-fighting planes.
The French government had asked other countries for help because of the forest fires via the EU. Due to extreme drought and historically low rainfall, large forest fires are currently raging in several regions of France. The peak of the third heat wave of this summer is expected in France on Friday with temperatures of 38 to 41 degrees.