French wildfires jeopardise finish line of Tour de France's third stage

PARIS, July 5 - A forest fire that has ravaged more than 1,500 hectares (5.8 square miles) in southwest France could threaten the third stage of the Tour de France on Monday, when cyclists are due to cross the finish line in Les Angles, some 60 kilometres from the blaze.

A decision on whether to cancel the third stage will be taken "before the end of the day", local authorities said on Sunday, though race director Christian Prudhomme said earlier the route could be adapted if necessary.

Extreme heat and wildfires have broken out across Europe, with blazes in France and Spain raising safety concerns around this year's Tour de France, which kicked off in Barcelona on Saturday.

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, with a front line stretching 18 kilometres (11.18 miles), according to the departmental prefect.

No deaths have occurred so far, though two people - one firefighter and one resident - are in critical condition. Firefighters hope to prevent the outbreak spreading south toward the Tet river and the Aspres mountainous region, which is arid and hard to reach.

Seven departments in the south of France were classed as having a "very high fire risk" on Sunday by Meteo France.

In Spain's Catalonia region, where the first two stages of the race took place, a wildfire that ravaged about 2,200 hectares of forest in Les Gavarres has been stabilised, officials said on Sunday, but high temperatures and fumes could still complicate efforts to extinguish it.

That blaze, which broke out on Friday in Catalonia's Costa Brava, is thought to have been caused by a worker using a circular saw near a road, resulting in sparks that kindled and spread, local authorities said. The suspect was arrested on Friday. REUTERS