Hérault: a fire covers 320 hectares in Cournonsec, south of Montpellier

Firefighters in Hérault are battling a violent fire this Monday near Cournonsec. This town near Montpellier has already seen 320 hectares of scrubland ravaged by flames.

"The fire no longer threatens homes in Cournonsec," firefighters assured around 8 p.m., while around a hundred people had been evacuated to Montbazin, the neighboring town.

Nearly 500 firefighters and 100 fire trucks were on site. These ground resources were supported by four Canadair aircraft, the firefighters emphasized, adding that the roads within the intervention zone were closed to traffic.

A pallet manufacturing plant was saved from the flames and firefighters managed to reduce the spread of the fire, which was heading towards the neighbouring town of Montbazin.

The fire was allegedly started by "welding work," according to Midi Libre . According to the newspaper, it first "spread through a vineyard before entering a mass of scrubland and holm oaks."