A Dash 8-Q400MR Fireguard aircraft of the civil security drops retardant over a wildfire in Pouzols-Minervois, southwestern of France, on July 2, 2026. Photo by IDRISS BIGOU-GILLES / AFP
Nearly 3,000 people have been evacuated in southern France and water-bombing planes deployed to battle wildfires after a record-breaking heatwave last month, officials said Thursday.
Tourists and local residents had to be moved after a wildfire broke out in the town of Sainte-Marie-la-Mer and spread to Canet-en-Roussillon on Thursday.
Firefighters said nearly 3,000 people were evacuated, with half of them from three campsites in the affected area.
Two firefighters suffered minor injuries, said Pierre Regnault de La Mothe, the top regional official for the southern department of Pyrenees-Orientales.
