Impressive photos of the fire which ravaged the Barcarès Christmas village

The Pyrénées-Orientales firefighters were alerted this Monday around 4:30 a.m. for a very virulent fire in the very heart of the Christmas village of Barcarès. On site, flames several meters high ignited several market structures, including seven chalets completely destroyedas well as four refrigerated trucks and three maritime containers used as storage locations. Despite the scale of the disaster, the rapid and massive intervention of the emergency services made it possible to prevent the fire from spreading to the Lydia, the famous sandy liner which is a symbol of the city. The flames were finally brought under control around 7 a.m. No casualties have been reported.

Firefighters will remain mobilized all day to carry out flooding and clearing operations, in order to prevent any resumption of the fire. For now, the origin of the disaster remains undetermined and is the subject of a thorough investigation.

This fire is a hard blow for the Barcarès Christmas village, which was preparing to celebrate its 25th edition this year and which attracts nearly a million visitors every winter. The town hall and the organizers have not yet announced whether the event will be able to open as planned next Saturday