The massive fire in Occitania, the worst in France in 76 years, has been stabilized.

BarcelonaFirefighters this afternoon stabilized the forest fire that has been burning since Tuesday in Occitania. It is the worst to hit France since 1949. The provisional report shows that more than 17,000 hectares have been affected within a 90-kilometer perimeter.

The extinguishing efforts have involved up to 2,150 personnel, with 600 vehicles and 18 aerial resources, which were unable to prevent the flames from advancing, at the worst moments, at six kilometers per hour. Today, on the third day of fighting the fire, the extinguishing teams worked after a fairly wet night and with temperatures somewhat lower than those of Wednesday.

Appeal to clarify the causes of the fire

At this time, the cause of the fire has not been determined, and the investigation is ongoing. In fact, the Ribaute City Council issued a call on Facebook for witnesses to the origin of the fire. Specifically, they are asking "anyone who has seen a suspicious vehicle or individual near the tunnel between Ribaute and Lagrasse" to contact the emergency services.

For now, fire chief Adrien Santarelli explained in a statement to The Independent What they were able to clarify is that the fire originated on the side of a road. Prime Minister François Bayrou also indicated that the fire could have originated on the side of a road, but clarified that, for now, there is no proof.

The latest provisional report shows 17,000 hectares affected, of which 13,000 were burned. In addition, more than 2,000 people have been evacuated and some 2,000 homes are without electricity. The electricity grid operator, Enedis, has stated that for now, "the immediate priority is to ensure the continuity of essential services" such as access to water and the telecommunications network.

The affected land is mainly forests and cultivated fields, especially vineyards—between 800 and 900 hectares—and the flames have also destroyed at least 36 homes and around 40 vehicles. The virulence of the fire in the Ribaute area, a town located between Narbonne and Carcassonne, has already left one person dead, an elderly woman who refused to leave her home, and three people missing. The death toll has risen to two civilians, one of them seriously, and eleven firefighters, two of them in very serious condition.

Macron absent

On the morning of the third day the fire was raging, French President Emmanuel Macron only commented on the blaze in the Aude region with a tweet he posted Tuesday night, in which he expressed his support for firefighters and urged caution. French Prime Minister François Bayrou did travel to the affected area, calling the fire an "unprecedented catastrophe" both due to the area affected—the largest in 76 years—and the death toll it caused.

Bayrou guaranteed on Wednesday that all possible state aid would be activated, although he clarified that for the moment they do not plan to ask for help from other European countries. This support would be necessary if other fires broke out in the country, as the Aude fire requires the dedication of the majority of France's aerial resources to extinguish fires.

Just yesterday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her support for France and announced that the EU executive is ready to mobilize resources from RescEU, the EU reserve to assist member states facing natural disasters.