THOUSANDS REMAIN EVACUATED
Local temperatures were forecast to reach 32°C on Thursday, with stronger winds expected in the afternoon. Fire crews warned conditions could again become volatile.
The fire has left 13 people injured, including 11 firefighters. A 65-year-old woman who refused evacuation was found dead inside her home.
Roughly 3,000 homes remained at risk, and around 1,000 residents who were evacuated had not yet been allowed to return, officials said.
In the hardest-hit village of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, smoke continued to rise from pine-covered hills on Thursday, while helicopters dropped water over burning grasslands near vineyards. Fire engines patrolled the area, according to AFP journalists on site.
Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, visiting the region on Wednesday, described the fire as a “catastrophe on an unprecedented scale” and blamed global warming and prolonged drought.
“This is linked to climate change,” Bayrou said.
INVESTIGATION UNDERWAY
Authorities have opened an investigation into the cause of the fire, though no leads had been confirmed as of Thursday. The Aude department has seen a rise in fire-prone zones, driven by low rainfall and the removal of vineyards that once helped prevent flames from spreading.
“It’s terrible for the wildlife, the flora, and for the people who are losing everything,” said Aude Damesin, a resident of nearby Fabrezan.
Emergency services said France had already seen nearly 9,000 wildfires this summer, many concentrated along the Mediterranean coast.
