Dozens Injured As France Battles Blaze Amid Pandemic

By Stefan J. Bos, Special Correspondent Worthy News  
 
(Worthy News) – France faced two battles Wednesday with firefighters struggling to contain wildfires and authorities warning of a new wave of coronavirus infections.

Fires fueled by strong Mediterranean winds spread in several towns across the Marseille region, injuring at least 22 people, authorities said. From the air, vast plumes of smoke could be seen billowing above a picturesque wooded area near the Mediterranean coast.

Fires forced the evacuation of 2,700 tourists, nursing home residents, and others here in the Marseille region. Some 1,800 firefighters, backed by helicopters and planes, already battled the worst blaze through the night around the town of Martigues. But they could not prevent the destruction of several businesses. 

Flames spread quickly toward the sea, some eight kilometers (five miles) away. Fires were sweeping through residential areas and multiple campgrounds. Firefighters tried to evacuate campers via land and sea.

French Interior Minister Gerard Darmanin rushed to the site overnight, and firefighting teams were sent in from other regions to help.

CAUSE NOT KNOWN

The cause of the fires was not known. Officials said civilians and more than a dozen firefighters suffered minor injuries in the Martigues blaze and five others that erupted in the area. The other fires were brought under control in the towns of Port-de-Bouc, Aubagne-Carnoux, Gignac-la-Nerthe, and Fontvieille.

Given continued winds Wednesday and dry and hot weather across France, authorities banned any controlled fires in the area. Authorities also halted construction work involving sparks or hot equipment until the flames are extinguished.

The fires could not have come at a worse moment for France as businesses try to recover from the coronavirus pandemic. 

Adding to misery were fresh warnings by the government’s COVID-19 scientific council that France could, “at any moment” lose control over the spread of the coronavirus. Official data showed the first increase in intensive care patients since April rising by 13 over the weekend. 

Twenty-nine new deaths were reported over the same period, bringing the country’s reported coronavirus death toll to nearly 30,300 people. 

Latest Worthy News