Flames Threaten Bordeaux: France Battles Unprecedented Wildfires
The wildfires in southwestern France remain out of control. The fires are moving toward the major city of Bordeaux, with the first suburbs already evacuated. French Prime Minister Lecornu ordered the deployment of the military.
The wildfires in southwestern France continue to spread. According to French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, approximately 140,000 people have so far been brought to safety in the greater Bordeaux area.
French President Emmanuel Macron called on the armed forces, according to those close to him, to mobilize and support civil protection with "maximum reinforcement." France's Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez stressed that the country had never before experienced fires of this magnitude and promised to "do everything" to protect the city of Bordeaux.
Prime Minister Lecornu had convened an inter-ministerial crisis committee for late Friday evening. Lecornu stated that a total of 1,000 military personnel would be deployed to fight the flames. An area of 22,000 hectares has already been devastated in the region. Lecornu described it as a self-sustaining fire of an intensity never seen before.
First Bordeaux Suburbs Evacuated
A acrid smell of smoke hangs in the air across the greater Bordeaux area, with ash drifting down from the sky. A local official warned that the fire is moving toward Bordeaux. Local authorities ordered the evacuation of communities near the city "as a precaution" against the approaching flames. Due to deteriorating air quality, 1.5 million FFP2 masks are said to be on their way to the greater Bordeaux area.
Authorities ordered a complete evacuation of Cap Ferret, the peninsula popular with vacationers. Around 44,000 residents and tourists left the area via the only road toward Bordeaux or by boat across the Arcachon Basin. More than 800 people reached Arcachon by sea, according to the municipal administration. Around 40 of the 1,000 firefighters battling the blaze near Cap Ferret were injured, according to authorities.
The traffic information website Bison Futé urged motorists to avoid roads in the area in order to keep access routes clear for emergency services.
Prosecutors Investigate Cause of Fire
According to prosecutors, the fire may have been started by a brush cutter used during work on a high-voltage power line, the use of which was still permitted at that time.
Prosecutors also announced that two men were being investigated for endangering the lives of others after being caught smoking in forested areas. In one case, gendarmes determined that the man had lit a barbecue next to his campsite the previous day.
In total, emergency services in France were battling 32 active wildfires of varying intensity, according to Interior Minister Nuñez. Since the beginning of the year, more than 50,000 hectares have already burned — nearly three times as much as in the same period last year.
With information from Cai Rienäcker, ARD Studio Paris.
