Météo-France placed eight départements along the Mediterranean coast – Bouches-du-Rhône, Var, Vaucluse, Drôme, Gard, Hérault, Aude and Pyrénées-Orientales – on the ‘orange’ alert for forest fires on Wednesday.
This is the second-highest warning level, indicating a heightened risk of forest fires because of current weather conditions.
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In Bouches-du-Rhône, 23 forestry areas were also closed to the public.
Local authorities described the risk of fires as ‘very severe throughout the département’, with a strong Mistral wind creating gusts of up to 65 km/h from the Rhône to Aix-en-Provence and Marseille.
Therefore, entrance to the following 23 massifs (forest/ mountainous areas) is forbidden: Montagnette, Rougadou, Alpilles, Chambremont, Chaîne des Côtes, Lançon, Les Roques, Pont de Rhaud, Quatre Termes, Castillon, Sulauze, Arbois, Côte Bleue, Collines de Gardanne, Montaiguet, Regagnas, Sainte-Victoire, Étoile, Garlaban, Sainte-Baume, Calanques, Cap Canaille and Grand Caunet.
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In the Vaucluse déparement, local authorities also closed 11 massifs: Bollène-Uchaux, Dentelles de Montmirail, Rasteau-Cairanne, Collines du Pays Voconces, Plaine du Comtat, Vallée du Rhône, Monts de Vaucluse, Petit Lubéron, Grand Lubéron, Collines de Basse Durance, and Enclave des Papes.
In the Var, the Monts Toulonnais and Sainte-Baume massifs are off-limits. You can keep up with restrictions and forest fire risk on the préfecture’s website on forest fire risk, which is updated daily.
In the Gard, access to the Gard Rhodanien and Costières-Petite Camargue areas is forbidden, reports France Bleu Gard Lozère; while, in the Aude, the prefecture has declared three massifs, Saint-Victor, Basses-Plaines and Narbonnais, out of bounds due to ‘severe fire risk’.
In the Hérault département, access to Mont Saint-Loup, Forêt des Pierres Blanches, Causse d’Aumelas and colline de la Moure, Cirque de Mourèze and Montagne de Liausson, is not permitted, while in the Pyrénées-Orientales, the Corbières and Roussillon massifs closed to the public due to an ‘exceptional’ risk of fires.
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There have already been some forest fires this summer in France, particularly in areas that have struggled with drought and hot conditions.
On Sunday, dozens of local residents had to be evacuated due to a fire near Montpellier, and more than 3,000 people had to be evacuated from a campsite in the middle of the night when a fire broke out in the commune of Canet-en-Roussillon in the Pyrénées-Orientales département close to the border with Spain.
Both fires were contained by firefighters as of Monday.
What about the days to come?
Météo France took the eight départements above off the orange warning for Thursday, but they kept several parts of south-west and south-eastern France on a ‘yellow’ warning, which means that “current weather conditions do not significantly increase the risk of forest and vegetation fires starting and spreading compared to summer norms.”
As for the weather, no départements were listed on heatwave warning for Wednesday or Thursday, with temperatures expected to be in line with seasonal norms.
Nevertheless, the French government website on forest fire prevention explains that “nine out of 10 forest fires are of human origin, and half of which are due to carelessness (…) When vegetation is dried out due to lack of rain, a fire can start and spread quickly.
“Anything from a cigarette butt to a poorly extinguished barbecue, a spark from building work or fireworks can cause a fire in the grass and brushwood.”
France is home to 16.9 million hectares of forest, making it Europe’s fourth most forest-rich country in Europe.
What if I see a forest fire?
Anyone who spots the beginnings of a fire or even just smoke, is advised to call the fire service (number 18, or the Europe-wide 112 number), and give as much information about location and potential access for emergency vehicles.
READ ALSO: What to do if you see a wildfire in France
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