The situation was evolving " favorably " Tuesday, August 25 on the front of the fire which has burned several hundred hectares of vegetation near Marseille since Monday, AFP learned from the firefighters, who still had to deal with a few fires.
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Nine hundred firefighters - against 1,300 Monday evening - were still present Tuesday morning to fight against the disaster, which finally burned 450 hectares of vegetation, according to the fire and rescue service (Sdis) of Bouches-du-Rhône, including one Previous report reported 500 hectares traveled. " The wind will really drop at 09:00, that should help us a lot ," commented a spokesperson for Sdis.
However, he should get up during the afternoon, " but less strong than during the last three days ", added another spokesperson for the Bouches-du-Rhône firefighters: " It is for this reason that we will remain vigilant even if the situation evolves favorably ", he added, anticipating a" difficult job of flooding "the fire throughout the day on Tuesday.
Six firefighters slightly injured
The disaster which started around 2:05 p.m. Monday in Istres, about fifty kilometers west of Marseille, then affected three other municipalities, Saint-Miter-les-Remparts, Port-de-Bouc and Martigues, forcing the firefighters, supported by significant air assets, to protect homes and occasionally evacuate a few people.
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Six firefighters were slightly injured or inconvenienced in the operations, like two other people, including a pregnant woman. All of the 24 Bouches-du-Rhône massifs have been placed at “ very high fire risk ” since this weekend because of the heat and wind, which means in particular a ban on access for the public. On the night of August 4 to 5, a fire devastated more than 1,000 hectares in a very touristy area of Martigues, in the Bouches-du-Rhône, which required the evacuation, including by sea, of several hundred of people.