6,000 people evacuated as wildfires reignite in SW France

Paris [France], August 11: Wildfires near Landiras, a city in France's southwestern department of Gironde, have burnt 6,000 hectares of land and evacuated more than 6,000 people from their homes, French daily news channel BFMTV reported on Wednesday.
More than 1,000 firefighters and an aerial fire brigade have been mobilized to put out the flames. Local authorities said high winds, heat waves and a persisting drought are likely to aggravate the fires.
The wildfires, which began in Landiras in July, reignited on Tuesday and spread to the neighboring department of Landes during the night.
In the city of Belin-Beliet, 16 homes were destroyed by the flames. No casualties were reported thanks to timely evacuation. The fires have also prompted evacuations in the cities of Hostens, Saint-Magne and Moustey, according to BFMTV.
Several roads have been closed, including the highway A63 linking the cities of Bordeaux and Bayonne, said local authorities, adding that heavy trucks are advised to bypass certain highways in the department.
The wildfires that broke out in Gironde last month were never extinguished and have burnt 20,600 hectares of land and evacuated at least 36,000 people, local authorities said.
In another development, wildfires that broke out on Friday in the mountains of Diois, in the southeastern Drome department, have burnt 280 hectares of land and are yet to be put out.
Likewise, wildfires raging in the departments of Lozere and Aveyron in southeastern France destroyed 700 hectares of land and evacuated more than 3,000 people in the cities of Mostuejouls and Riviere-sur-Tarn early Tuesday morning.
Source: Xinhua