Aude: A massive wildfire that has scorched through 16,000 hectares (39,537 acres) of forest and villages in southern France since Tuesday has now been contained, local authorities said on Thursday.
According to Bahrain News Agency, firefighters will remain deployed in the area in the coming days to secure the site and prevent flare-ups, they added in a statement. Residents affected by the blaze are still barred from returning to their homes without official clearance, as many roads remain closed and potentially hazardous due to uninspected damage and fallen power lines.
France's biggest wildfire in nearly eight decades has resulted in the death of a woman who officials said had disregarded evacuation orders. The fire has also caused 18 injuries, including 16 firefighters, destroyed 36 houses, damaged 20 others, and forced some 2,000 residents and holidaymakers to flee the area.
At the height of the crisis, approximately 5,000 households lost power, and as of Thursday evening, around 1,500 homes were still without electricity, local authorities said. Plumes of smoke rose over the forest area in the Aude region, and drone footage showed swathes of charred earth after the fire swept across an area one-and-a-half times the size of Paris.
The blaze, not far from the border with Spain and the Mediterranean Sea, spread unusually rapidly, fanned by strong winds and very dry vegetation following months of drought in the area. "The fire's progression is slowing down, but we are still dealing with an active fire," the region's deputy prefect, Remi Recio, told reporters.
Close to 2,000 firefighters were on the ground to fight any flare-ups. The territory the wildfire has gone through around 16,000 hectares, local authorities said in their last update on Thursday evening, while French media reported the affected area to be around 17,000 hectares (40,000 acres). "The battle isn't over yet, the fire could reignite with greater force," Prefect Christian Pouget said earlier.