Nearly 950 hectares burned as wildfires continue across southern France

French authorities continued battling multiple wildfires across southern regions of the country on Friday, with nearly 950 hectares burned in the Aude department.

Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon said state resources had been fully mobilized to respond to the fires, with approximately 2,000 firefighters deployed alongside civil security teams and aerial firefighting aircraft.

"The question we can ask ourselves is whether we need more resources. The answer is certainly yes," Bregeon told France 2 television.

In Aude, a wildfire near Pouzols-Minervois, which has been burning for two days, has affected around 950 hectares, broadcaster BFMTV reported.

Later in the day, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced that the Pouzols-Minervois wildfire was brought under control after around 500 firefighters stayed deployed overnight to prevent the fire from spreading further.

"We are very worried about the season. Yesterday, for example, there were 26 wildfires burning simultaneously across the country," he told reporters while visiting the area.

Nunez also called on the public to remain vigilant and underscored that "nine out of 10 wildfires are caused by human activity."

‘No significant respite in coming days’

Elsewhere in southern France, authorities said the wildfire in Lancon-Provence, in the Bouches-du-Rhone department, had been under control since Thursday evening.

In the Pyrenees-Orientales department, officials said a fire that swept through the port area of Canet-en-Roussillon on Thursday had been contained.

Local authorities said access to the nautical center would remain restricted until further notice despite the fire being under control.

Another wildfire that started in Sainte-Marie-la-Mer before spreading to Canet-en-Roussillon was also reported to be contained on Friday morning.

Local authorities in the Drome department also announced a wildfire described as "flare-up" was underway in the commune of Die, burning more than 100 hectares and resulting in the deployment of over 100 firefighters.

The departments of Herault and Pyrenees-Orientales, where several wildfires have broken out in recent days, were placed under an orange heat wave alert for Saturday.

The Pyrenees-Orientales, Aude, and Gard departments were also placed under the highest-level red wildfire risk alert.

There is "no significant respite expected in the coming days," said Jean-Christophe Vincendon, the weather service Meteo-France's national coordinator for wildfires.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Thursday that nearly 7,000 wildfires had broken out and 8,700 hectares had burned across France since the start of the fire season.