Overview
- The Gros Bessillon fire in the Var is still active and not fully fixed after a violent reprise on 31 July that added about 1,850 hectares and brought the Var total to roughly 6,350 hectares, officials said.
- A separate Gironde 'mégafeu' has been classified a sinistre de grande ampleur after burning about 42,000 hectares, and the prefecture has released an initial €300,000 for urgent local works.
- Police and prosecutors have opened multiple inquiries into causes; the Draguignan prosecutor said deliberate ignition of some restarts is being seriously considered and the interior ministry reported 402 people detained nationally with 36 in custody.
- Hundreds to more than a thousand firefighters remain mobilized to secure lisières and put out hotspots, with reports of several personnel lightly injured and operations on alert for forecast winds such as the mistral that could re‑ignite fires.
- Local economies face immediate losses and longer recovery needs: vineyards report burned parcels and smoke risks to grapes, tourism and infrastructure were hit by evacuations and destroyed homes, and the government has launched a MRAT mission to coordinate reconstruction and climate adaptation.