French authorities have placed an 18-year-old volunteer firefighter and a second 18-year-old man under formal investigation on suspicion of starting a wildfire in the Fontainebleau forest south of Paris. Prosecutor Diane Ngomsik stated that the volunteer firefighter initially admitted to using a lighter and petrol to start the fire before later retracting his statement.
The blaze, which began on Sunday, has burned more than 2,000 hectares (5,000 acres) of the historic forest and forced the evacuation of approximately 1,000 people. While the fire has been contained, it is not yet fully extinguished. The incident caused the partial closure of a major north-south motorway and threatened the Palace and Park of Fontainebleau, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
President Emmanuel Macron visited the region on Thursday, noting that roughly 10% of the forest had been damaged. He stated that the country has faced an unprecedented number of fires this year, citing nearly 11,000 recorded incidents since January. No casualties have been reported from the Fontainebleau forest fire.
The investigation occurs as France and other European nations experience a series of heatwaves. Experts from the Copernicus climate service noted that Europe is warming at twice the global average, leading to increased wildfire risks across the continent, including recent fatal fires in Spain and large-scale blazes in the United Kingdom.