President Emmanuel Macron says there will be no leniency for arsonists after a major fire struck the Fontainebleau forest.
President Emmanuel Macron stated that there will be no leniency for those responsible for the recent forest fire south of Paris. The blaze, which burned more than 2,000 hectares of the UNESCO World Heritage site, forced the evacuation of approximately 1,000 residents and campers. While the fire has been contained by hundreds of firefighters using Canadair aircraft and helicopters, it has not been fully extinguished. The fire was exacerbated by an exceptional heatwave, which experts attribute to climate change. The forest, a significant national landmark and the birthplace of nature tourism, houses thousands of species of plants and animals. While the 1,500-room royal palace was spared, the surrounding woodland faces a long recovery period. Stefan Doerr, director of the Centre for Wildfire Research at Swansea University, noted that the forest could take up to 30 years to fully recover from the damage. Authorities have placed two 18-year-olds under formal investigation as potential arsonists.