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The fire in Cerbère, in the Pyrénées-Orientales, was brought under control on Monday April 17. Nearly 1,000 hectares went up in smoke. Firefighters are keeping watch on the ground.
As far as the eye can see, blackened landscapes. The hills of Cerbère (Pyrénées-Orientales) were devoured by flames on Sunday April 16. 1,000 hectares of vegetation were devastated. The 300 residents gradually returned to their homes during the day on Monday. A resident complains of a major disaster. The fire reached the ground floor of his pavilion, and spread to the first floor. “There was a flashback and everything went into it, it was swirling winds. (…) Yesterday, frankly, it was madness”he confides.
The sector under close surveillance
Throughout the day, the sector remained under close surveillance. In hard-to-reach areas, the 500 firefighters mobilized track down the fire that is still smoldering underground. It will take time for the city of Cerberus to recover. “We are a municipality of 850 hectares, we can say that we are impacted at 80% on a natural environment”, comments the mayor, Christian Grau. A watch will be kept overnight on what is believed to be the most extensive blaze on record this spring.