Investigators in France suspect that the Landiras fire, one of two that have ravaged thousands of hectares of forest in the southwestern department of Gironde since Tuesday, was caused by criminal action, the Bordeaux prosecutor’s office announced on Friday.
“In the state of the investigations, the criminal thesis is privileged concerning the fire of Landiras,” the prosecutor’s office told French news agency AFP, specifying “that all leads continue to be explored.” There have been no arrests thus far, the prosecutor’s office added.
Close to 7,700 ha. of forest have been burned by the two fires, including 4,500 ha. in the Landiras sector, about 40 kilometres south of Bordeaux.
