SAEDNEWS: Firefighters have contained a massive wildfire in southern France but local officials warned on Sunday that scorching heat and dry conditions could reignite the blaze, as parts of the Mediterranean region face a heatwave.
The fire has ravaged a vast area of France’s southern Aude department at the peak of the summer tourist season, killing one person and injuring several others, AFP reported.
Authorities said that hot, dry winds on Sunday — similar to those on the day the blaze began — and a heatwave would make the work of firefighters more difficult.
“It’s a challenging day, given that we are likely to be on red alert for heatwave from 4:00 pm, which will not make things any easier,” said Christian Pouget, prefect of the Aude department.
The fire is no longer spreading but is still burning within a 16,000-hectare area, said Christophe Magny on Saturday, chief of the region’s firefighter unit, adding it would not be under control until Sunday evening.
But the blaze will “not be extinguished for several weeks,” he said.
Some 1,300 firefighters were mobilized to prevent the blaze from reigniting amid fears that the tramontane wind, which officials said picked up overnight Saturday to Sunday, could fan lingering hot spots.
Temperatures this weekend are expected to hit 40 degrees Celsius in some areas, and Monday is forecast to be the “hottest day nationwide,” according to national weather service Meteo France.
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