- The fire that ravaged nearly a thousand hectares in Corsica is "contained", according to the Minister of the Interior, Christophe Castaner who went there.
- The fire started Tuesday morning in the town of Quenza. Four water bombers and 120 firefighters from the mainland have helped 200 firefighters and Corsican specialists.
- However, it will still take a few days for the firefighters to fully extinguish the fire.
The fire that ravaged Corsica nearly a thousand hectares of forest and scrub is "contained" but planes water bombers and firefighters are fighting tirelessly to control it completely, said the minister on the spot Interior Christophe Castaner. The fire, which did not make victims, started Tuesday morning on the commune of Quenza (Corse-du-Sud) in the middle of maritime pines and quickly spread in a forest and a neighboring valley because strong winds from storm Hervé swept Corsica that day.
"What is happening today in Corsica is indicative of global warming," said Christophe Castaner who arrived at the beginning of the afternoon at the command post installed in the annex town hall of Solaro (Haute-Corse). The fire is "not under control but it is contained," he added, adding that "it may take several days to fully control it". On the ground, four water bomber planes and 120 firefighters from the continent are helping 200 firefighters and specialists already on the job.
The Quenza fire is still very active pic.twitter.com/7oyjCH1fPN
- Corse-Matin đź“° (@Corse_Matin) February 4, 2020These reinforcements come from the fire and rescue services of Var, Bouches-du-RhĂ´ne, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and the battalion of Marseille firefighters and joined Solaro in the early afternoon. Firefighters reported that 900 hectares of conifers and scrub burned. They had mentioned, Tuesday, more than 1,000 hectares affected but a more detailed assessment revealed that certain areas have been preserved.
"No sensitive point threatened and no wounded"
A north wind with strong gusts always complicated the work of firefighters, said at midday the departmental operational center for fire and rescue (Codis) which ensures that "there is no sensitive point threatened and no injuries ”. "We cannot say for the moment that the fire is contained," he said, describing a "complicated and exhausting job".
The water bomber planes began their flight over the area at around 9:30 am on Wednesday, an AFP journalist found. Two civil security helicopters also assist the firefighters. An investigation has been opened by the Ajaccio prosecution and investigations are underway to try to determine the origin of the fire.
Tuesday, the plume of smoke caused by the fire had spread "over 300 km," said Météo France. The locality of Solenzara and its surroundings had been plunged for several hours in an apocalyptic atmosphere, according to residents.
Several fire starts
On Wednesday, the blue of the sky was visible again, but a light veil of smoke clung to the mountain peaks, according to an AFP journalist. The disaster did not require evacuation but several hundred homes were deprived of electricity on Tuesday, according to EDF Corse who told AFP on Wednesday that the situation had returned to normal. Corsica had been placed in orange vigil on Tuesday at 6:00 am for strong winds. Wednesday, the island was however no longer the subject of vigilance but the wind was still blowing strongly on the coast. At the peak of the passage of the Hervé storm on Tuesday, Météo France notably recorded gusts at 195.1 km / h on Cap Corse (Haute-Corse).
The use of fire was prohibited Tuesday and Wednesday throughout the Isle of Beauty. Despite this measure, three other "wildfires" were identified in Haute-Corse on Wednesday, according to firefighters who said that one of them had "needed to divert two Canadairs". At the end of December, storm Fabien cut Corsica off the continent for several days.
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Corsica: A monster fire burns over 1,000 hectares, reinforcements are expected
Strasbourg
Weather: Eight departments placed on orange alert, due to floods or strong winds
- Christophe Castaner
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