Paris, Aug 11 : Wildfires near Landiras, a city in France’s southwestern department of Gironde, have burnt 6,000 hectare of land and evacuated more than 6,000 people from their homes, French daily news channel BFMTV reported.
More than 1,000 firefighters and an aerial fire brigade have been mobilised to extinguish the flames. Local authorities said high winds, heat waves and a persisting drought are likely to aggravate the fires, Xinhua news agency reported.
The wildfires, which began in Landiras in July, reignited on Tuesday and spread to the neighbouring department of Landes during evening.
In the city of Belin-Beliet, 16 homes were destroyed by the flames. No casualties were reported thanks to timely evacuation. The fires have also prompted evacuations in the cities of Hostens, Saint-Magne and Moustey, according to BFMTV.
Several roads have been closed, including the highway A63 linking the cities of Bordeaux and Bayonne, said local authorities, adding that heavy trucks are advised to bypass certain highways in the department.
The wildfires that broke out in Gironde in July were never extinguished and have burnt 20,600 hectare of land and evacuated at least 36,000 people, local authorities added.
In another development, wildfires that broke out on Friday in the mountains of Diois, in the southeastern Drome department, have burnt 280 hectare of land and are yet to be put out.
Meanwhile, wildfires raging in the departments of Lozere and Aveyron in southeastern France destroyed 700 hectare of land and evacuated more than 3,000 people in the cities of Mostuejouls and Riviere-sur-Tarn early Tuesday morning. (IANS)
