Ecological catastrophe: Thousands forced to evacuate as massive wildfires rage across French Riviera and Corsica

RT
Wed, 26 Jul 2017 12:04 UTC

© Valery Hache / AFP

People enjoy the beach as they look at a forest fire in La Croix-Valmer, near Saint-Tropez, on July 25, 2017

Thousands of people including holidaymakers have been evacuated in southern France as massive wildfires rage across the French Riviera and Corsica. Locals and authorities say the areas affected by the fires resemble "apocalyptic scenes."

"The evacuations, at least 10,000, followed the progression of the fire. It's an area that doubles or triples its population in summer," a fire service official told AFP near the Bormes-les-Mimosas commune in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeast France.

© Pochard-Casabianca / AFP

An aerial view taken on July 25, 2017 shows the fire devastated landscape in Biguglia, on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica

At least 3,000 of those evacuated were holidaymakers, the official added.

"All of France is mobilized," the head of the fire service in southeast France, Colonel Gregory Allione, told France Info.

On Tuesday, 23 water bombers, including 12 Canadair planes, and 11 helicopters were mobilized to battle the fires, the Interior Ministry wrote on Twitter. Some 4,000 firefighters were deployed across the country, Interior Minister Gérard Collomb said.

© Pascal Pochard-Casabianca / AFP

A picture taken on July 25, 2017 shows smoke rising from a fire in Biguglia on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica

About 20 firefighters and police officers were injured while battling the flames, according to reports in local media.

A fire in La Croix-Valmer, an affluent and popular Saint-Tropez resort, destroyed 500 hectares of land, as cited by France Bleu newspaper.

"It's an ecological catastrophe. It's a disaster area. There's nothing left," La Croix-Valmer's deputy mayor, Rene Carandante, said when describing the scene.

© Eric Gaillard / Reuters

People look at a forest fire in Castagniers near Nice, France July 17, 2017

Charles Scibetta, mayor of the town of Carros, near the resort city of Nice, told France Info that the town now resembles a "lunar landscape."

The island of Corsica in the Mediterranean Sea was also engulfed by the blaze, with one resident describing to AFP the "apocalyptic" scenes. The wildfires affected some 1,800 hectares of forest, authorities in the city of Biguglia in Corsica said.

Comment: Locals and tourists alike have been forced to camp out on area beaches as the flames rage near St. Tropez. More photos can be found here.

Thousands of tourists were forced onto the beaches last night as wildfires tore along the southern French coast

Firefighters face a daunting task with many hundreds of hectares engulfed by the inferno

Dramatic pictures show the raging inferno tearing through the forest

Huge swathes of land were left a charred wasteland after the fires had passed