This morning, following a reconnaissance mission carried out by the Haute-Corse fire brigade, the figures have been revised downwards. Between 150 and 200 hectares of vegetation were burnt last night and overnight.
Since this morning, there have been several water drops by Canadair aircraft, which have helped the fire brigade to bring the fire under control; however, please be aware that the wind is still strong in the area, even though it is tending to ease off.
A summary of the facts
At around 10.00 pm on Tuesday evening, a fire broke out in the commune of Pigna in Haute-Corse. Very quickly, significant resources from SIS 2B, as well as a Civil Protection Training and Intervention Unit (UIISC), were deployed to tackle the blaze.
Two separate fires were spotted by the fire brigade. The first broke out in the village of Corbara near the convent, and the second between Aregno and Pigna. At around midnight, the two fires merged to form a single blaze that was very difficult to bring under control.
Since Tuesday afternoon, the Haute-Corse department has been under a yellow alert for ‘strong winds’, which is making it extremely difficult for the firefighters on the ground to bring the fire under control. Indeed, wind gusts were reaching speeds of between 80 and 130 km/h at the time of the fire.
At 2.00 am, France 3 Corse reported that the area covered was 250 to 300 hectares burnt. A fire service command post has been set up in the municipality of Santa Reparata di Balagna. The SDIS 04, 05 and 26 have been called in as reinforcements, along with the RCSC 2B. Two Canadair aircraft will take off from Ajaccio as soon as weather conditions improve.
Thirty houses were spared from the flames. Concerned residents gathered in the church square to follow the spread of the fire minute by minute. A village hall – that of Santa Reparata di Balagna – was opened to provide food and drink to the evacuated residents.
More information to follow…