Paris: French authorities have deployed two firefighting aircraft to combat a fast-moving wildfire in the Fontainebleau forest, south of Paris, as extreme heat continues to grip the country.
Officials described the blaze as ‘virulent’ and of ‘exceptional scale,’ prompting the partial closure of France’s main north-south motorway during one of the busiest summer travel weekends. Earlier on July 13, the fire had spread across 800 hectares and remained out of control in the forest, located around 60 kilometres southeast of Paris.
The wildfire comes as the Paris region experiences its third heatwave of the year, with temperatures soaring during a summer that has seen records broken across several European countries.
According to Eric Brocardi of France’s National Federation of Firefighters, it marked the first time firefighting aircraft had been deployed from the country’s typically hotter and drier southern regions to tackle a blaze in the Paris area.
Two firefighting helicopters and an observation aircraft were also dispatched to assist emergency crews. Brocardi added that the priority was to protect lives and property as firefighters worked to contain the rapidly spreading flames.
The wildfire also caused widespread travel disruption. Earlier, another fire forced the closure of a motorway east of Paris and affected high-speed rail services to southern France. French rail operator SNCF reported delays of up to six hours for trains arriving at and departing from Gare de Lyon on Sunday evening.
The ongoing heatwave has also affected the country’s energy sector, with three nuclear power stations temporarily shutting down to prevent the release of overheated cooling water into already warm rivers.
High temperatures also disrupted the Tour de France, with organisers reducing the July 12 stage by 30 kilometres as temperatures approached 40°C.
France’s wildfire emergency follows a series of devastating blazes across Europe. In Spain, at least 13 people were killed in a wildfire in Almeria, one of the country’s deadliest on record.
Meanwhile, emergency services in the United Kingdom declared a major incident following a large wildfire in north Wales, while firefighters continued battling multiple fires across England and Wales.
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