France deploys water bombers as Fontainebleau forest fire burns for second day

Firefighting aircraft battled for a second day Monday to contain a fire in the Fontainebleau forest south of Paris. Two water-dumping planes and hundreds of firefighters were deployed to the area, according to the French interior ministry. The blaze, which authorities described as "very virulent," remained uncontained as of Monday afternoon.

Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau told reporters that arson is being considered as a possible cause. "We cannot rule out the possibility that this fire was started intentionally," he said. A new fire broke out in another section of the forest on Monday, according to regional fire services. Winds were shifting and complicating containment efforts, a regional fire service spokesperson said.

The fire prompted evacuations of some residential neighborhoods near the forest. Trains to and from Paris's Gare de Lyon station were disrupted late Sunday but resumed normal service Monday morning. A section of the A6 highway southeast of Paris was closed due to the fire risk. The Fontainebleau forest lies roughly 70 kilometers south of the capital.

France is experiencing its third heat wave of the summer, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius in western and central regions. The Fontainebleau fire is one of several wildfires reported across western Europe in recent days.