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MARTIGUES: Almost 3,000 people were evacuated on Tuesday night, some by boat, from homes and camping sites near Marseille in southern France as forest fires tore through 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) of vegetation.
About 1,800 firefighters battled blazes fanned by strong winds overnight and 14 sustained light injuries, officials said. No civilians were hurt.
The occupants of an old people’s home and other locals, as well as tourists from France and abroad, had to be rescued as flames devoured the Blue Coast -- a pine tree-lined area between Marseille and Martigues on the Mediterranean shore.
Homes and eight campsites near Martigues, where the fire started, and Sausset-les-Pins were evacuated “as a preventative measure”, the fire service said. AFP)
About 1,800 firefighters battled blazes fanned by strong winds overnight and 14 sustained light injuries, officials said. No civilians were hurt.
The occupants of an old people’s home and other locals, as well as tourists from France and abroad, had to be rescued as flames devoured the Blue Coast -- a pine tree-lined area between Marseille and Martigues on the Mediterranean shore.
Homes and eight campsites near Martigues, where the fire started, and Sausset-les-Pins were evacuated “as a preventative measure”, the fire service said. AFP)
