Wildfires Destroy Over 16,000 Hectares in Southern France
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August 7, 2025 Hour: 8:32 am
At least 2,100 firefighters and 500 fire trucks have been deployed to contain the blaze in Aude.
On Wednesday, French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said that the ongoing wildfire in France’s southern department of Aude is a “disaster of unprecedented scale”.
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A wildfire broke out shortly after 4 p.m. local time on Tuesday in Aude, and over 16,000 hectares of vegetation have since been destroyed.
The fire has claimed one life, an elderly woman who perished in her home in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, Aude. Asked about the possible cause of the wildfire, Bayrou said it was probably caused by roadside activities, without giving further details.
The French prime minister also pointed out that global warming and drought could have also contributed to the scale of the wildfire. Local authorities in Aude announced that at least 2,100 firefighters and 500 fire trucks have been deployed to contain the blaze.
The text reads, “Fire in Aude: previously unseen images of the damage after the blaze. Below, we see a HBE refueling. This morning, the fire is neither contained nor under control.”
According to BFMTV, rescue operation directors said the fire has spread 28 kilometers from its point of origin and is currently moving at a speed of 5 to 6 kilometers per hour.
“The Aude fire is an unprecedented disaster. The country’s hottest departments are on the front lines facing the consequences of climate change, starting with megafires,” said Clémence Guetté, a French politician with La France Insoumise (LFI).
“But what have the Macronists done over the past eight years? And what is Bayrou planning to do? They cut the budget for risk prevention and ecology. They weakened or eliminated agencies that monitor climate change, such as the OFB and the ONF. They reduced public administration positions and local government budgets everywhere, which in turn will have consequences for fire rescue services,” she recalled.
“Bayrou and Macron are a tragedy for the country. They are endangering France and the French. We need an emergency ecological and social budget. And we have to get rid of these incompetents,” said the leftist politician.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: Xinhua