Major wildfire sweeps across southwestern France

A major wildfire has broken out in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southwestern France, scorching around 1,500 hectares of land.

According to Le Figaro, the information was confirmed by the department's prefect, Pierre Regnault.

"The fire front stretches for 18 kilometres, and substantial resources have been deployed both on the ground and in the air to contain it," he said at a press conference.

According to the prefect, the blaze spread extremely rapidly in the area around the commune of Trévillach, with more than 900 hectares consumed by the fire overnight into Sunday alone. Around 700 firefighters and rescue personnel, supported by 200 vehicles and nine aircraft and helicopters, have been deployed to battle the flames.

Authorities have so far been unable to contain the wildfire due to strong winds and the difficult terrain in the affected area.

The prefect also warned that officials may decide later in the day to cancel a stage of the Tour de France cycling race because of the ongoing fire.