France Wildfires: The fire service in France has informed that thousands of people in Southern France have been evacuated as a wildfire rages near the plush resort of Saint-Tropez.
The quickly spreading wildfire in France, which broke out on August 16, 2021, about 100 km from the Mediterranean City Toulan, has already razed more than 3,500 hectares of forest and scrub land as of the morning of August 17.
Much of the Mediterranean Region has been facing bouts of extremely hot weather in the recent weeks but Southern France was till now able to escape any big blazes.
People evacuated due to fierce wildfire in France:
A fire service spokeswoman informed that thousands of people have been evacuated as a precautionary measure, but there are no reports of victims. However, she further added, that the fire was still very fierce.
Evacuation in Southern France due to wildfires has mainly taken place around Saint-Tropez and the villages of Grimaud and Le Mole.
It was also confirmed that, due to the wildfires in France, several campsites were cleared and the citizens were asked to avoid congesting the roads around the Gulf of Saint-Tropez so emergency services can access the area.
Firefighters dispatched to tackle France wildfires
The Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin informed that France has dispatched hundreds of firefighters to tackle a wildfire that broke out in the Var Region of Southern France.
Un important incendie est en cours dans le Var avec des conditions météorologiques très défavorables. Le préfet du Var est sur place et je suis attentivement la situation. Tout mon soutien aux 650 sapeurs-pompiers mobilisés cette nuit pour protéger les habitants. @SDIS83 pic.twitter.com/BqmVpL0Vvg
— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin)
August 16, 2021
The minister said that 650 firefighters had been deployed to protect the residents in the areas and multiple water-bombing aircraft were also involved in the operation to contain the wildfires that have already burned several hundred hectares.
The fierce fire was burning near the village of Gonfaron which is about 50 km west of the Riviera town of Saint Tropez.
What is the reason behind increase in wildfires?France is a new addition to a number of Mediterranean countries which are hit by extreme weather and wildfires. Climate scientists have warned that these wildfires and other forms of extreme weather conditions are going to be increasingly common because of man-made global warming. Fierce wildfires have already flared this summer in a number of Mediterranean countries, including Turkey, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Algeria, and Morocco. In Europe, two wildfires because of the strong winds had raged out of control near Athens forcing the evacuation of villages. |