Wildfires plague Europe as heat wave breaks records

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A helicopter drops water to extinguish a wildfire near the city of Toledo, Spain.- Reuters
A helicopter drops water to extinguish a wildfire near the city of Toledo, Spain.- Reuters

Paris - French media said a man had been arrested for deliberately starting fires in one Gard village.

By Reuters

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Published: Sat 29 Jun 2019, 11:00 PM

Last updated: Sun 30 Jun 2019, 1:11 AM

Hundreds of firefighters battled on Saturday to contain wildfires in southern France as a stifling heat wave brought record-breaking temperatures to parts of Europe, killing at least three people in Italy.
In the Gard region, where France's highest temperature on record was registered on Friday at 45.9 degrees Celsius, scores of fires burned some 600 hectares of land and destroyed several houses and vehicles, emergency services said.
More than 700 firefighters and 10 aircraft were mobilised to tackle the fires in the Gard, some of which caused sections of motorways to be temporarily closed. Several firefighters were hurt but no serious injuries were reported.
French media said a man had been arrested for deliberately starting fires in one Gard village.
The extreme heat was expected to ease on Saturday in southern France but highs were still forecast at close to 40 degrees.


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