A forest fire raging in southwestern France has led to a ban on the public attending the third stage of the Tour de France cycle race in the Pyrenees.
The fire, which has ravaged more than 4,500 hectares of forest land, has come within 37 miles of the finish line in Les Angles, according to the news service Reuters.
Whilst the race will still go ahead, officials called on the public not to travel to the race trail or finish line to free up security manpower to fight the forest fire that is still spreading.
Some 750 firefighters, 200 vehicles and nine water-bombing helicopters and other aircraft have been deployed to contain the fire in the Pyrenees-Orientales department.
Firefighters are trying to stop the fire from spreading south towards the Têt River and the Aspres mountainous region.
Seven departments in the south of France were classed as having a ‘very high fire risk’ on Sunday by the national weather and climate service, Météo-France.
The Foreign Office warned in June of the dangers of extreme temperatures in France during the summer, but it is not advising against travel to any part of the country.
Photo is a stock image of the Tour de France from Shutterstock
