One dead as ‘hellish’ wildfire burns across area the size of Paris in southern France

One person has died as France’s biggest wildfire this summer sweeps through a southern region, forcing tourists and residents to flee.

Officials called the scenes “hellish” after the blaze broke out in Ribaute in the region of Aude, close to the border with Spain.

The victim died in their home in the village of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, about 20 miles north of the city of Perpignan, officials said.

Thirteen people have been injured, including 11 firefighters, since the wildfire started on Tuesday, authorities added.

One person who was initially feared missing has been located and is safe.

The French interior ministry said the fire remains “very active” and has already burned across 13,000 hectares (79,000 acres) – an area larger than Paris.

At least 25 houses have been burnt down, while many roads have been closed.

The blaze was said to be spreading rapidly through forests and villages, forcing residents and tourists to flee.

About 2,000 firefighters and several water-bomber aircraft were tackling the blaze.

The hot, dry and windy conditions have been making it difficult for firefighters to contain the blaze, officials added.

Jacques Piraux, mayor of Jonquieres village, told broadcaster BFM TV: “It’s a scene of sadness and desolation.

“It looks like a lunar landscape, everything is burned.

“More than half or three-quarters of the village has burned down. It’s hellish.”

Dutch national Renate Koot, who was on holiday in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse with her partner, said: “One moment we were on the phone with our children … thinking, ‘look, a fire’.

“The next, we had to jump in the car and leave, while praying for protection.

“We didn’t take anything with us and just left. We’re okay, miraculously.”

Residents and tourists were advised to remain indoors unless told to evacuate by firefighters.

Two campsites have been evacuated as a precaution.

Drought conditions in Aude – which is a major wine-producing region – had forced officials to introduce restrictions on the use of water, the environment ministry said.

The lack of rainfall in recent months had “played a major role in the spreading of the fire, since the vegetation is very dry,” it added.

Last month, a wildfire that reached the southern port of Marseille, France’s second-largest city, left around 300 people injured.

There have also been major wildfires in other parts of the Mediterranean and southern Europe in recent weeks, including in Spain, Crete, Greece and Turkey.

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Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires.