Rain gives France a break in the firefighting battle
Rain from Saturday night to Sunday in southwest France allowed for a "break" in the battle against a massive fire that has ravaged 7,400 hectares since Tuesday.
Arno Mindos of the Gironde fire and rescue teams said the situation had "notably improved during the night" due to the rain.
The blaze, which erupted a month after two "unusual" fires, one in Landeras, 40 kilometers south of Bordeaux, and a second in the Teste-du-Buc in the Arcachon tourist basin, was relatively "contained" on Sunday without being "under control", according to the fire service.
The police command said in a statement that "risks of its renewal remain."
"Between 10 and 30 mm of rain fell on the strip, but on very dry ground. This gives a respite but does not mean the end of the battle," Mendos added.
At the site, about 400 firefighters from Germany, Romania, Poland, Austria, Greece and Italy are still supporting the French firefighters.
The fires have tripled the annual rate of area burned during the past ten years in France, which is suffering from an unprecedented drought.
With the heat wave receding and thunder and rain storms announced from Sunday, the country is hoping for a breather on the fire front.
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