France’s biggest wildfire this summer was spreading quickly on Wednesday in a Mediterranean region near the Spanish border after leaving one person dead, authorities said.
About 2,000 firefighters and several water bomber aircraft battled the blaze that broke out on Tuesday afternoon in the village of Ribaute in the Aude region, a rural, wooded area that is home to wineries.
The wildfire remained “very active” on Wednesday and weather conditions were unfavourable, the local administration said in a statement.
The weather was hot, dry and windy, making it difficult for firefighters to contain the blaze.
One person died in their home, and at least 13 others were injured, including 11 firefighters, local authorities said.
One person who was initially described as missing has been located and is safe.
The Interior Ministry said the fire had spread over 13,000 hectares (32,000 acres), an area larger than the French capital Paris.
Jacques Piraux, mayor of the village of Jonquieres, said all residents have been evacuated.
“It’s a scene of sadness and desolation,” he told broadcaster BFM TV after he visited on Wednesday morning to assess the damage.
“It looks like a lunar landscape, everything is burned. More than half or three-quarters of the village has burned down. It’s hellish.”
Residents and tourists in nearby areas were requested to remain in their homes unless told to evacuate by firefighters.
Two campsites were evacuated as a precaution.
French prime minister Francois Bayrou met firefighters and residents at Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, where the fire service’s command post has been set up.
The Environment Ministry said the Aude region has been experiencing a drought this month, with water use restrictions in place.
Lack of rainfall in recent months “played a major role in the spreading of the fire, since the vegetation is very dry”, the statement said.
Last month, a wildfire that reached the southern port of Marseille, France’s second-largest city, left around 300 people injured.
Southern Europe has seen multiple large fires this summer.
Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires.
Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
