• A fast-moving wildfire in southeastern France has forced the evacuation of nearly 400 people from several villages.
• The wildfire has spread across 2,500 hectares in the mountainous region north-east of Marseille, with 10 houses destroyed and around 50 others damaged.
• Emergency services have prevented the fire from spreading to hundreds more homes, with 1,100 firefighters, four aircraft, three helicopters, and around 350 vehicles deployed to combat the blaze.

Some 1,100 firefighters are battling a wildfire that has spread across 2,500 hectares in the mountainous region north-east of Marseille, authorities in southern France said on Wednesday.

The regional government in the Var district said on Wednesday around midday that all fire pockets should be extinguished before the Mistral wind picks up again this afternoon.

Four people are reported to have suffered mild smoke inhalation. Ten houses have been destroyed by the flames and around 50 others damaged, it said in a statement. However, emergency services have prevented the fire from spreading to hundreds more homes, it added.

Authorities said firefighters have deployed four aircraft, three helicopters and around 350 vehicles, with additional support arriving from a neighbouring region.

Around 500 residents evacuated from threatened villages had to spend the night in emergency accommodation. Hundreds of households in the region around the villages of Cotignac and Pontevès are without electricity. Several country roads have been closed, the regional administration said.

The fire broke out on Tuesday afternoon in a field and then spread at a rapid pace, the local newspaper Var-Matin reported. Two local politicians cited an electric fence as a possible cause of the fire.

Fire brigades are also battling wildfires in other parts of France. The highest forest fire risk level is in force in several regions.

On Tuesday, two firefighters were killed while battling a blaze at Bordeaux Airport after being trapped by the flames inside their fire engine.