Romanian firefighters intervened, Tuesday afternoon, to extinguish a dry vegetation fire in a tourist area, in Argeles-sur-Mer, southern France, the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations (IGSU), informs.

The mission of the Romanian firefighters was to limit the spread of the fire and maintain a line of protection between the base of the fire and the unaffected area.

„Considering the increased supply/discharge capacity of the Romanian special vehicles, the Romanian firefighters were entrusted with the right flank of the fire, with the role of direct attack and liquidation of the fire both on a linear front, over a distance of approximately 600 m, and on some raging outbreaks. Due to the wind, the drought and the high temperature, there was a constant danger that the fire would spread rapidly to the nearby forest,” the quoted source states.

The tourist area where the firefighting mission was carried out has an influx of people, as there are many camping areas in the vicinity.

„The efficient way in which the intervention forces managed to extinguish the fire contributed to the safety of the people in this area and allowed the development of road traffic, without restrictions,” IGSU adds.

Romanian firefighters participated in the intervention at the request of their French counterparts. In total, approximately 100 firefighters, two helicopters and an airplane took part in the action to extinguish forest fires.

AGERPRES