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 by AFP Staff Writers Brest, France (AFP) July 25, 2022
Two forest fires that broke out in northwest France last week were caused by arson, prosecutors said Monday, taking to three the total of deliberately started blazes in recent weeks. The two fires in normally wet and blustery northwest Brittany came during a fierce heatwave that has scorched Europe over the last fortnight. They are "without doubt of human origin", local prosecutor Carine Halley said, adding that experts had identified the starting points. The Brittany fires were relatively small compared with two others further south that have destroyed more than 20,000 hectares (49,500 acres) of tinder-dry woodland in the Gironde region around Bordeaux. More than 2,000 firefighters backed by planes and helicopters have been battling the flames in Gironde since July 12. A total of 36,000 people were evacuated from their homes and camp sites in the area. The biggest one -- inland around the village of Landiras -- has been finally contained, senior local official Fabienne Buccio announced on Monday. "The fire is still not out," she stressed, but was no longer spreading. It too is being treated as arson, prosecutors said last week, but a 39-year-old suspect has been released for lack of evidence. "To extinguish it altogether it could take several weeks and will depend on the weather," top regional fireman Marc Vermeulen told reporters. Twenty-five firefighters have been lightly injured but no-one has been killed in the operations against both fires in Gironde, which Buccio hailed as a "positive" result. Five houses, a restaurant and a nightclub were destroyed, along with five camp sites. But 2,800 buildings that were "directly exposed" to the fires escaped unharmed, she said. - Apocalyptic images - Huge areas of forest have been lost around the popular Dune du Pilat on the Atlantic coast, Europe's highest sand dune, which is normally teeming with tourists in the summer months. It is believed to have been started accidentally by a spark from a vehicle. Apocalyptic images of the fires last week as many areas reported record temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) led to renewed debate in France about climate change. Experts say that human-induced global heating will lead to increased risks of heatwaves, drought and forest fires. A lack of rain and repeated heatwaves have left almost all of France's regional departments on a state of drought alert, to varying degrees, the state-run water restrictions website Propluvia said Monday. Water is now mainly for "priority uses", including drinking and sanitation, as well as hospitals and other essential services, with many regions restricting car-washing, garden watering and other less vital uses. Agriculture is also suffering, with crop failures in some areas, water restrictions in others and grain harvests often taking place at least two weeks earlier than usual. Rivers are lower than in previous years and the flow of the Rhine in northeastern France is "particularly low", according to France's waterways authority, the VNF.
One person killed fighting Morocco forest fire The two victims were helping Monday in operations to extinguish a fire in Tanouate province near Fez and Meknes, local sources told AFP. The injured volunteer was hospitalised but his life was not in danger. Firefighting services were working overnight to control the blaze after ensuring the safety of villagers, authorities added. About 33 hectares (82 acres) of forest have been destroyed in the region. Several outbreaks of varying magnitude have resumed in recent hours in northern Morocco, particularly in Larache province, which was recently devastated by forest fires that left one dead. The Moroccan government on Friday released emergency aid of nearly 30 million euros ($31 million) to help victims of forest fires and reduce their impact on agricultural activity and the environment. Forest fires destroyed more than 10,500 hectares in the north of the kingdom in mid-July. Morocco, which is experiencing severe drought, has been hit by heatwaves over the past month. Scientists say human-induced climate change is amplifying extreme weather, with global warming leading to increased risks of heatwaves, drought and forest fires.
Dozens evacuated as forest fire rages in Czech Republic The blaze in the Bohemian Switzerland National Park on the Czech-German border comes amid record temperatures. "Several dozen people had to be evacuated from a tourist resort, a scout camp and from the two communities of Mezna and Mezni Louka threatened by the flames," Milan Rudolf, spokesman for the Czech fire brigade in the Usti nad Labem region told AFP. No casualties have been reported but "the situation is critical," Czech Environment Minister Anna Hubackova wrote on Twitter after visiting the area where the alarm was first raised on Sunday morning. Forty-six Czech firefighting units tried to extinguish the fire on Monday. They were helped by three German units, which left for the German side of the border where the fire started to spread in the afternoon, Rudolf said. Temperatures in the Czech Republic have been very high over the past few days, with new records broken on Monday for a July 25, and a maximum of 36.4 degrees Celsius (97.5 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded in the western Pilsen region.
Greek firefighters battle inferno 'disaster' at natural park Athens (AFP) July 25, 2022 Greek firefighters battled wildfires on three fronts Monday as flames destroyed around 2,200 hectares (5,400 acres) of woodland in one of the country's most important protected habitats. Around 320 firefighters, ten water-bombing planes and 13 helicopters were deployed to contain the fire, now raging for a fourth day, at the Dadia National Park, known for its black vulture colony. Some villages in the area have been evacuated. The flames have already destroyed some 2,200 hectares of woodland, ac ... read more
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