The prefect of Nouvelle-Aquitaine et Gironde has said this afternoon that the situation regarding the two forest fires in the area seems to be stabalizing. The Prefect said that the fires did not progress last night, there have still been no serious injuries and no new homes were destroyed. At this stage, no further evacuations are planned. A total of 36,750 people have been evacuated since the start of the crisis. Local reports this afternoon said that several thousand evacuees had been authorized to return to their homes. The Prefect said that the situation will be reassessed on a daily basis, and the reintegration of populations will be carried out sector by sector depending on the situation. In the area of La Teste-de-Buch the fire is no longer progressing. 7,000 hectares of forest have been burned since the start of the crisis. In Landiras in the district of Langon, the fire is contained for the moment. There has been no change in the area burned since the Prefect's last update yesterday at 10 p.m. 13,800 hectares have been burnt by that fire since Tuesday last week, covering a perimeter of 66 km. However, the Prefect said that several hotspots remain. The firefighters remain mobilized and continue to secure the edges of the perimeter.
Locally in the Var, several forest massifs are closed today because of the risk of fire. They are the Centre-Var, Haut-Var, Sainte-Baume and Monts Toulonnais massifs. Access, traffic and works are prohibited. An interactive map is available online which provides information on the regulations governing access and carrying out work in the various forests of the Var. It is updated every day before 7 p.m. for the next day and can be found on the Prefecture's website var.gouv.fr
The hot weather is set to continue in our region. Meteo France have placed the Alpes-Maritimes on an Orange warning for high temperatures until at least 4pm tomorrow, Friday. The Var is on a Yellow warning until midday tomorrow which then becomes an Orange level warning until at least 4pm.
Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi has said on Twitter that he denounces what he called "the unbearable violence" committed against the three police officers in Lyon. The officers were attacked by a crowd while attempting to make an arrest. Two of them reportedly suffered injuries.
La Poste is set to discontinue the famous red stamp and replace it with an "e-letter". The organization said today that it is modernizing its mail range to meet new customer uses and improve its carbon footprint. As of January 1, 2023, customers will be able to choose between 3 types of letter: the red e-Letter for their urgent shipments delivered the next day, the Green Letter for their daily shipments delivered in three days and the "Turquoise Services Plus" letter for their shipments of their most important documents requiring follow-up notifications.
BUSINESS
The European Central Bank has raised interest rates for the first time in more than 11 years. It raised its key interest rate by 0.5 percentage points to 0.0% and said that it plans further increases later in the year. The rate has been negative since 2014 to encourage banks to lend rather than deposit money with the ECB.
Interest payments on UK government debt in June were the highest amount on record in June, hitting £19.4bn. It pushed government borrowing for the month up to the second-highest June level since records began in 1993.
SPORT
Football...Bordeaux have announced that they have reached an agreement in principle for the transfer of striker Sekou Mara to Southampton. The club said today that he will travel to England in order to have his medical examination and sign his contract.
Cycling... Danish rider Jonas Vin-gegaard has won stage 18 of the Tour de France today. He retains the yellow jersey and now has a lead of over three minutes overall.
Former Tour de France winner Chris Froome has withdrawn from ths year's event after testing positive for Covid-19. He was placed 40th overall with four days of the race remaining.
A man is in a critical condition in hospital after being found with wounds to his throat in Nice
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US President Donald Trump has taken aim at France during a Fox News interview this week, saying that the United States has “had a lot of problems with...
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Numerous commemorative ceremonies for Armistice Day have been held in our region and throughout France...
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Police are searching for Nadège, a woman who disappeared on Sunday evening after suffering a puncture on a roadside near Pignans, in the Var region. A...
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Nicolas Sarkosy is set to be released from prison after a decision by the Paris Court of Appeal this afternoon. He has been incarcerated for the past ...
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