It's an area that doubles or triples its population in summer," said a fire service official of the blaze near Bormes-les-Mimosas on the Mediterranean coast. But the blaze had already consumed 400 hectares of coastal forest in an area dotted with homes, he said. A local official accused the authorities of failing to regularly remove dry undergrowth, making the forest a fire hazard. Speaking to France Info radio, Mayor Charles Scibetta described waking up to a "lunar landscape" and said the inhabitants had a lucky escape. Riviera becoming 'bushier'"All of France is mobilised," the head of the fire service in southeast France, Colonel Gregory Allione told France Info, adding that extra firefighters had been drafted in from the north.

Source: The Nation Bangkok July 26, 2017 06:00 UTC