Firefighters in southern France are continuing their tireless fight against a massive forest fire that they managed to bring under control last night, but is not expected to be completely extinguished for several more days, Agence France-Presse reported, BTA reports.
This fire, the biggest on the French Mediterranean coast in at least 50 years, has burned about 17,000 hectares of vegetation in just over 48 hours and has claimed the life of one person in the Aude department.
In a statement, local authorities specified that firefighters would remain heavily mobilized on the scene in the coming days. Due to the dangers, access to forest areas is prohibited until Sunday.
“The roads closed to traffic remain uninspected and potentially dangerous, especially due to the presence of downed electrical cables“, the administration said.
As a result, affected residents are still unable to return to their homes without permission from local authorities.
The prefect of Aude, Christian Pouget, said that around 2,000 evacuated people are still unable to return home. Yesterday, several hundred of them were accommodated in multi-purpose halls in several municipalities.
Puget added that the fire will not be declared completely extinguished for at least a few more days and that much work remains to be done.
Over 2,000 firefighters, more than 200 gendarmerie officers and air support resources are engaged in fighting the fire.
Last night, around 1,500 households remained without electricity, the electricity distribution company “Enedis“ reported, stressing that ensuring the continuity of services such as water supply and telecommunications is a top priority.
According to preliminary data, the fire has completely or partially destroyed 36 houses and 54 vehicles, local authorities reported.