IN PICTURES: Massive wildfire burns through southern France
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Evacuations, road closures, maps: The latest on wildfire in southern France
One woman has died and nine people have been injured. In total, 25 homes have been destroyed or damaged by the flames as of Wednesday morning.
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One dead and nine injured in massive wildfire in southern France
In the town of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabreisse, the damage was particularly evident.
The remains of a home and car in the village of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabreisse on August 6th. (Photo by Idriss BIGOU-GILLES / AFP)
Authorities mobilised over 1,800 firefighters to battle the flames, but the fire was still spreading quickly on Wednesday morning.
Firefighters at work in Tournissan, southwestern France, on August 5, 2025. (Photo by Idriss BIGOU-GILLES / AFP)
As of Wednesday morning, local officials reported that over 11,000 hectares - an area equivalent to the size of Paris - had been burned.
This photograph shows burnt vehicles in an area devastated by a wildfire near Fontjoncouse, southwestern France, on August 6, 2025. (Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP)
Helicopters have been used by civil security to drop water over the wildfire.
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A helicopter drops water in Jonquières, southwestern France, on August 5, 2025. (Photo by Idriss BIGOU-GILLES / AFP)
Canadairs were also mobilised to drop fire retardant.
This photograph shows a canadair of the French civil security droping fire retardant over a wildfire near Fontjoncouse, southwestern France, on August 6, 2025. (Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP)
The fire has now been ranked as the largest France has seen since the start of July.
A forest is engulfed in flames as a wildfire rages near Fontjoncouse, southwestern France, on August 6, 2025. (Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP)
On Tuesday night, the smoke from the fast-moving fire was visible from the Mediterranean coast in Banyuls-sur-Mer.
Tourists sit on the beach as smoke from nearby wildfires fills the sky, on August 5th. (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)
The fire has spread exceptionally rapidly due to strong winds and parched vegetation.
#Incendie
🔴🔥 Cette image glaçante d'un paysage qui se consume inexorablement dans l'Aude.
📸 Préfet 11
pic.twitter.com/1WGpuVgc7l
— Stéven Tual (@StevenTual_off)
August 6, 2025
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France 24
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- France 24
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Euronews
12 hours ago
- Euronews
At least one person killed in massive wildfire in southern France
At least one person has been killed in their home and several others are injured in a massive wildfire that continues to burn in France's southern department of Aude, near the border with Spain. The fire, which began on Tuesday, has so far burned through more than 130 square kilometres of land, an area larger than Paris, the interior ministry said. This makes it the largest wildfire in France so far this summer. The local administration stated that weather conditions are unfavourable and the fire remains "very active." Around 2,000 firefighters and several water bomber aircraft have been mobilised to tackle the blaze which broke out in the rural village of Ribaute, a wooded area home to wineries. Jacques Piraux, the mayor of the village of Jonquières, confirmed that all residents have been evacuated. "It's a scene of sadness and desolation," he told local media after visiting the scene on Wednesday morning to assess the damage. "It looks like a lunar landscape, everything is burned. More than half or three‑quarters of the village has burned down. It's hellish." Reports indicate that the injured include seven firefighters and at least one person is missing. Two campsites have been evacuated as a precaution, while residents and tourists have been instructed to stay in their homes unless directed otherwise. French Prime Minister François Bayrou is set to visit the area on Wednesday, according to his office. In July, the southern port city of Marseille, France's second-largest city, was also affected by a massive wildfire, which left around 300 people injured. Scientists warn that climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making southern Europe more vulnerable to wildfires. The European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service reports that Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s.
