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Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has said France’s devastating wildfires are now under control, more than a week after the country’s largest blaze since 1949 destroyed thousands of hectares of land and forced hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate.
Lecornu confirmed on Saturday that the fires, which spread across several regions following weeks of extreme heat, were no longer threatening to expand significantly.
“Overall, the fires are now under control in our country,” he said in an interview with La Tribune Dimanche.
The worst blaze erupted in a pine forest near Bordeaux in southwestern France, destroying about 42,000 hectares (104,000 acres) of land and damaging around 240 homes.
The fire, which affected the Gironde region, became France’s largest wildfire since a deadly 1949 blaze in the same area that burned about 50,000 hectares.
Officials said the situation around Bordeaux had stabilised, but warned that some areas remained under close watch.
“Fire fixed doesn’t mean fire out,” Gironde prefect Sophie Brocas said, noting that two hotspots were still causing concern.
More than 224,000 people who were evacuated from affected areas have been allowed to return home, while others are waiting for firefighters to fully contain the remaining flames.
France has faced a wave of wildfires following repeated heatwaves that dried out vegetation and increased the risk of fast-spreading fires.
Scientists have linked the extreme weather conditions to human-driven climate change.
In the southeastern Var region, firefighters continued monitoring another major blaze, which spread rapidly due to strong winds.
Regional prefect Simon Babre said the fire had moved “faster than a galloping horse”, but crews had managed to slow its advance.
The blaze in Var had already consumed 5,600 hectares of land in July, with Hollywood actor George Clooney, his wife Amal and their children among those forced to evacuate their home earlier in the week.
Rail services disrupted by the Bordeaux-area wildfire resumed on Saturday as authorities continued recovery efforts.
According to satellite data from the European Forest Fire Information System, France has recorded about 92,000 hectares of burnt land this year, the highest figure in two decades.
Police have arrested 308 people in connection with the wildfires, with 33 currently in custody as investigations continue.
