MOSCOW, July 20 (Bernama-Sputnik/RIA Novosti) — Almost 40,000 hectares of forest and vegetation have been burnt since the beginning of the year, French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on Monday, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.
“At the moment, just under 40,000 hectares [98,842 acres] of forests and vegetation have been burnt,” Nunez said on France Inter radio.
These figures are significantly higher than last year, the minister said, adding that new fires break out every day.
Wildfires rage in Frances as a result of exceptional heat wave.
French President Emmanuel Macron said in mid-July that France has faced a record number of wildfires this summer since the end of World War II.
At the end of June, the country’s meteorological service issued weather warnings in 72 of the 96 departments, the highest number ever recorded.
The temperature approached 40 degrees Celsius, and was even higher in some areas.
— BERNAMA-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI