Thousands flee after wildfires hit France
A tourist stands in La Couronne, as heavy smoke rises from a wildfire which broke out in La Couronne, near Marseille, on Tuesday.
Almost 3,000 people were evacuated on Tuesday night, some by boat, from homes and camping sites near Marseille in southern France as forest fires tore through some 1,000 hectares of vegetation.
About 1,800 firefighters battled blazes fanned by strong winds overnight and 14 sustained light injuries. No civilians were hurt.
The occupants of an elderly people’s home and other locals, as well as tourists from France and abroad, had to be evacuated as flames devoured Blue Coast — a tourist area between Marseille and Martigues on the Mediterranean shore. Some people had to be rescued by sea from camping sites and beaches.
In hot, dry summer conditions, the fires broke out on Tuesday afternoon, and spread quickly, fanned by strong winds — up to eight kilometers in two hours.
“It was panic, we had to go down to the beach and we could see the flames coming closer,” said Maryse Escuder, 83, holidaying with her family including great-grandchildren. They spent the night in a gymnasium in Martigues.
“I first smelled the smoke and then saw the flames,” said Marc Lorenz, a German on holiday with his wife and three children, who also slept on camp beds in the hastily-erected emergency reception center. Others were taken in by locals. The blazes were mostly under control by yesterday morning.
“We are waiting to see when people will be able to return, some camp sites and houses have been damaged, firefighters are still in action,” said Benedicte Gameaux, a spokeswoman for the Martigues city.
