Disruption for Dutch holiday makers: Route du Soleil closed due to wildfire

© picture alliance / NurPhoto | Jerome Gilles

The French fire department is unable to bring a major forest fire southeast of Paris under control, affecting Dutch holiday makers who want to travel to the south of France.

The Route du Soleil, the A6—well known to Dutch travelers—is closed between Paris and Dijon. This is causing problems for holiday makers. It's also not yet clear when the highway will reopen.

The fire has been raging since Sunday afternoon in the Fontainebleau nature reserve and, according to authorities, could last for days or even weeks. Heat, wind, and dry ground are making it very difficult to extinguish the blaze, and firefighters fear it could spread from 800 to 1,000 hectares.

The French government is investigating the possibility of arson, as new fire hotspots have been found in several locations around the highway. Thousands of people from surrounding villages have been evacuated. France has even had to deploy firefighting aircraft from the south, including Canadair CL-415 aircraft, which is unusual for this region. The well-known red-and-yellow aircraft can carry about 6,000 liters of water per flight. In this case, they are drawing that water from the Seine.

“Since the fire broke out yesterday afternoon, more than 800 firefighters have been deployed. Currently, 300 firefighters are on the scene battling this extremely intense fire. Since Sunday, firefighters have been deployed to two separate fire sites on either side of the A6 highway, which eventually merged and endangered three municipalities,” the prefect of the Seine-et-Marne department told the French press on Monday afternoon. “No casualties have been reported among emergency responders, firefighters, or the general public.”

The prefect confirmed that the wildfire is still spreading. On Monday, a code red is in effect in 37 French departments due to the ongoing heat and drought.

Picture: © picture alliance / NurPhoto | Jerome Gilles