A wildfire in the Corbieres hills in southern France, inland from the Mediterranean coast, has already closed a major highway and left two people injured, one critically, local officials said.
Authorities shut parts of the A9 motorway linking France to Spain on Tuesday. The section between the cities of Perpignon and Narbonne in both directions has been affected, France’s fire agency said on Twitter.
Camping grounds and one village were partially evacuated in Aude department, and several local roads were closed.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on X the fire was progressing and that “all the nation’s resources were mobilized.”
“The fire is spreading very quickly because the weather conditions are unfavorable. It’s one of the driest areas in the department and the wind is strong,” Lucie Roesch, secretary general of Aude prefecture, told AFP news agency.
More than 1,200 firefighters have been mobilized to battle the flames, supported by water bomber planes, Aude prefecture said on X.
By late Tuesday evening, the fire had already burned some 9,200 hectares, according to France’s Le Monde newspaper, citing Aude prefecture.
A video posted on X Tuesday afternoon by the French Fire Brigade showed flames roaring behind a village and the sky dark with smoke.
Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru
