France has deployed firefighting aircraft to battle a major wildfire in the historic Fontainebleau Forest south of Paris, where more than 400 firefighters worked overnight to contain the blaze amid a severe heatwave sweeping Western Europe.
The fire, which broke out near a motorway close to the town of Fontainebleau, had burned more than 800 hectares by midnight, fueled by hot winds. The forest is home to one of France's most famous royal palaces.
According to the French Fire and Rescue Service, firefighting operations are continuing, with two Canadair water-bombing aircraft drawing water from the River Seine to help extinguish the flames.
The wildfire, around 70 kilometers from Paris, forced authorities to close the A6 motorway linking the capital with Lyon and southern France, while smaller fires in the region disrupted high-speed rail services.
The blaze comes as Western Europe experiences its third prolonged heatwave of the summer. Wildfires have already scorched thousands of hectares across France, Spain, Portugal and Greece, while scientists continue to link the increasing frequency and intensity of such fires to climate change.
According to Reuters, the late-June heatwave is estimated to have caused more than 10,000 excess deaths across Europe, alongside power outages, school closures and record-breaking temperatures in France, Spain and the UK.
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