Wildfires raging through the French Riviera have forced holidaymakers to flee as parts of the region including campsites were evacuated.

British tourists were among thousands caught up in the safety operation as local authorities said flames had engulfed some 4,000 hectares (9,880 acres) of land in southern France.

La Londe-les-Maures, nearby Bormes-les-Mimosas and La Lavandou in the Var area of Provence saw some 10,000 people evacuated, including 3,000 campers, a statement from the prefecture said.

Four tracker planes and a firefighting aircraft had formed part of the emergency response after fires became ferocious at around 11pm on Tuesday.

Hundreds of firefighters are battling to bring several blazes under control since they broke out on Monday, including the one which has scorched 800 hectares in Var and another in northern Corsica.

The picturesque corner of southern France has long been a popular holiday destination for British visitors and is at the start of the summer season.

Planes were seen contributing to the emergency response, after French authorities asked the European Union for help.Lisa Minot, a British journalist who had been visiting a campsite at Bormes-les-Mimosas in Var, claimed thousands of people were asked to leave in the middle of the night.

She told BBC News on Wednesday morning: "The fires have been going all night, our campsite has its own beach and at two o'clock this morning they evacuated everybody.

"There are about 1,000 pitches in the campsite, they evacuated everyone down to the beach and we have been here ever since.

"There are very strong winds ... and this is what is hampering the efforts to fight the fire, because they really cannot predict where the flames are going to go next."

She said around 3,000 people had been moved to the beach and asked not to move by authorities, adding: "The sun has come up and it is going to be 31 degrees today, but because of the pool smoke that is over the entire sky, the sun is not as hot as it probably could be."</s>Sunseekers in the French Riviera appeared determined to have their summer fun Tuesday, even as approaching wildfires seemed like they could be a little too close for comfort.

Hundreds of firefighters are battling blazes, fanned by high winds, in more than a dozen zones in the Riviera region of southern France. Four firefighters have been injured.

A local official, tweeting on Tuesday, a day after the fires started, said about 100 people were evacuated in Ramatuelle, while five hectares burned in Saint-Tropez.

There have been no reports of injuries among residents or tourists.</s>Thousands of people were forced to evacuate their homes in the south of France as forest fires engulfed up to 4,000 hectares across the region.

People were forced to take shelter overnight on the beach near the popular resort of Saint-Tropez.

The violent fire took hold at just before 11pm on Tuesday, officials said and 540 firefighters were sent in to the region to tackle the blaze along with four tracker planes and a fire-fighting aircraft.

Lisa Minot, travel editor of The Sun, told Good Morning Britain that more than 3,000 people had been evacuated to the beach from the campsite her and her family were staying on.

No one was being allowed back onto the campsite until firefighters had the blaze under control, she said.

"It was pretty traumatic," Ms Minot said.

The fire is the latest blaze to sweep across tinder dry southern France which is experiencing an exceptionally hot summer.

"The evacuations, at least 10,000, followed the progression of the fire. It's an area that doubles or triples its population in summer," said a fire service official of the blaze near Bormes-les-Mimosas on the Mediterranean coast.

Joan Collins, who has a home down there, appeared to be among those evacuated.

The actress tweeted: "Luckily we were able to evacuate last night, not easy with 11 people in the house! We are all okay".

She later posted a picture of a blaze saying: "Being in the middle of this was a bit of a nightmare".

At least 12 firefighters have been injured and 15 police officers affected by smoke inhalation since the fires broke out on Monday, according to the authorities.

Fires have swept along the Mediterranean coast since Monday, in the mountainous interior and on the island of Corsica.</s>Sunseekers in the French Riviera appeared determined to have their summer fun Tuesday, even as approaching wildfires seemed like they could be a little too close for comfort.

Hundreds of firefighters are battling blazes, fanned by high winds, in more than a dozen zones in the Riviera region of southern France. Four firefighters have been injured.

A local official, tweeting on Tuesday, a day after the fires started, said about 100 people were evacuated in Ramatuelle, while five hectares burned in Saint-Tropez.

There have been no reports of injuries among residents or tourists.</s>NICE/MARSEILLE, France (Reuters) - Firefighters battled wind-whipped infernos along the French Riviera coast on Tuesday as the flames torched vegetation on hills overlooking glitzy Mediterranean resorts thronged by summer holidaymakers.

Local authorities said several firefighters were injured and one hospitalized but there were no immediate reports of deaths, unlike with similar wildfires that have killed dozens elsewhere in southern Europe, notably Portugal.

One blaze that erupted late on Monday, near the Croix Valmer resort and the yacht-filled marinas of Saint-Tropez, sent clouds of thick smoke into azure skies within view of busy beaches.

Authorities said that blaze had engulfed 650 hectares of land in one of several spots where fires prompted closure of parts of the local road network, a rail line and at one stage part of the A51 motorway in the southeastern corner of France.

Weather forecasters said strong winds would persist for another day or two days at least, heightening the risk that even spots where firefighters were close to containing the flames could fall prey to another flare-up.

One of the blazes was thought to have been started by a bolt of lightning, but carelessly discarded cigarette butts are often blamed for setting tinderbox areas of the midsummer southern coast alight.

Another fire that scorched at least 800 hectares of land in the picturesque Vaucluse region further inland was believed to be under control on Tuesday morning, local firefighters said.

But a further blaze was meanwhile ripping through swathes of hillside on the island of Corsica that lies off the French coast in a corner of the Mediterranean near Italy.

Upwards of 1,400 hectares of forest and woodland had already been destroyed by fire by Monday night, when a small number of people in the village of Mirabeau and a dozen horses were evacuated to safety, authorities said.</s>Firefighters and police have been injured as they battled wildfires in the French Riviera and on the island of Corsica.

Eight firefighters and some 15 police officers were hurt in the fires which broke out on Monday and consumed nearly 9,880 acres of vegetation, according to French authorities.

The French civil security authority has asked the European Union for help and to provide two Canadair planes to contain and extinguish the wildfire.

Hundreds of firefighters are currently involved in tackling the blazes.

There have been no reports of injuries among residents or tourists.

Flames burned almost 2,000 acres around the Var area of Provence, with two villas destroyed seven miles west of Saint-Tropez. A huge fire in the neighbouring Luberon region is now under control.

The Var prefecture said about 100 people had been evacuated in Ramatuelle.

The largest blaze was in northern Corsica, with nearly 5,000 acres burned.

French interior minister Gerard Collomb tweeted that he would travel to Corsica on Tuesday evening to meet emergency services.

People look on at wildfires in France.</s>Wildfires raging through the French Riviera have forced holidaymakers to flee as parts of the region including campsites were evacuated.

Thousands caught up in the safety operation as local authorities said flames had engulfed some 4,000 hectares (9,880 acres) of land in southern France.

La Londe-les-Maures, nearby Bormes-les-Mimosas and La Lavandou in the Var area of Provence saw some 10,000 people evacuated, including 3,000 campers, a statement from the prefecture said.

Four tracker planes and a firefighting aircraft had formed part of the emergency response after fires became ferocious at around 11pm last night.

Hundreds of firefighters are battling to bring several blazes under control since they broke out on Monday, including the one which has scorched 800 hectares in Var and another in northern Corsica.

The picturesque corner of southern France has long been a popular holiday destination and is at the start of the summer season.

Planes were seen contributing to the emergency response, after French authorities asked the European Union for help.

Lisa Minot, a British journalist who had been visiting a campsite at Bormes-les-Mimosas in Var, claimed thousands of people were asked to leave in the middle of the night.

She told BBC News this morning: "The fires have been going all night, our campsite has its own beach and at two o'clock this morning they evacuated everybody.

"There are about 1,000 pitches in the campsite, they evacuated everyone down to the beach and we have been here ever since.

"There are very strong winds ... and this is what is hampering the efforts to fight the fire, because they really cannot predict where the flames are going to go next."

She said around 3,000 people had been moved to the beach and asked not to move by authorities, adding: "The sun has come up and it is going to be 31 degrees today, but because of the pool smoke that is over the entire sky, the sun is not as hot as it probably could be."</s>Wildfires in southeastern France have forced the evacuation of at least 10,000 people overnight Tuesday, officials said.

The blaze, near Borme-les-Mimosas on the Mediterranean coast, came one day after France reached out to the European Union for extra help in fighting wildfires raging through the country's arid south, Agence France-Presse reports .

The exceptional heat and dryness this summer — coinciding with the peak tourism season on the French Riviera — has increased fire risks in the region.

"It's an area that doubles or triples its population in summer," a fire official said. "The evacuations, at least 10,000, followed the progression of the fire."

Wildfires have already ravaged about 4,000 hectares (15 square miles) of land around the Mediterranean coast, the hilly interior and on the island of Corsica.

One of the fires burning in La Croix-Valmar, near the seaside resort town of Saint-Tropez, had been contained Tuesday, AFP reports quoting local officials. But 400 hectares of coastal forest were burnt by then, forcing over 200 evacuations.

Authorities have deployed more than 4,000 firefighters and soldiers to combat the flames, with the help of 19 water-bomber planes. At least 12 firefighters have suffered injuries since fires broke out on Monday, while 15 police officers have been affected by smoke inhalation.</s>Actress Joan Collins is among the Saint-Tropez residents were have been forced to flee from their villas as huge fires ripped through the French Riviera and across southern Europe.Large forest blazes in the French Riviera, Corsica and Portugal were sparked by heatwaves across the sun-kissed region, which is already teeming with British tourists ahead of the busy summer holiday period.As tourists continued to sunbathe on the beaches, hundreds of firefighters tackled a blaze spanning 2,000 acres around the Var prefecture. Two villas were destroyed in La Croix Valmer, seven miles west of the glamorous holiday destination.British actress Joan Collins, 84, told Twitter followers she was one of 11 who fled from the house last night and later claimed the massive blaze had been caused by someone's barbecue.She wrote: 'Luckily we were able to evacuate last night, not easy with 11 people in the house! We are all okay. Thanks everybody for good wishes about our safety in fire, all seems ok although fire still burning started by BBQ.'Southeast France is experiencing an exceptionally hot, dry summer that have made it especially vulnerable to fires.Elsewhere, around 100 homes in the village of Mirabeau and a neighbouring hamlet had to be evacuated while cars and a house were gutted by flames in Carros, north of Nice.On the island of Corsica, one fire, made worse by strong winds, has spread across 900 hectares of forest and is reportedly threatening to engulf homes.Hundreds of fire fighters are working around the clock in southern France and water-bombing planes and helicopters have been dousing the inferno from above.About 100 residences were evacuated in the village of Mirabeau and a dozen of horses in a stable were also moved to safer ground.Fires have destroyed some 1,400 hectares of forest and woodlands in the south of France and the island of Corsica on Monday, authorities said.The biggest fire was in the village of Bastidonne, in the Vaucluse region, where fires, intensified by strong winds, consumed some 600 hectares of forest.Part of the A51 highway and the railway line between Briançon and Marseille have been closed temporarily, and public access to several forest areas has been suspended, prefecture officials said.'The fire is very fierce and heading to urban areas of Biguglia,' lieutenant-colonel Michel Bernier, of France's civil defence forces, told AFP.The blaze engulfed a sawmill and burned 10 vehicles.'We are awaiting reinforcements,' said regional deputy fire chief Jean-Jacques Peraldi. Around 160 people were battling the blaze aided by more than a dozen fire engines.Local official Gerard Gavory said that three firefighting planes were also involved, and 'have been surveying the area to make sure no homes are affected.'Another fire on the south of the island, which destroyed 110 hectares around the town of Aleria, was brought under control on Monday, Bernier said.'It's a very dangerous day,' Bernier said. 'And the fight is going to be very, very long tonight.'Almost 5,000 firefighters supported by water-dropping aircraft are deployed across central and northern areas of Portugal as the country continues its daily summertime battle against wildfires.The Civil Protection Agency says it has managed to bring under control all but one of 108 forest fires that broke out Sunday thanks to the efforts of almost 4,982 firefighters and more than 1,000 vehicles.The only blaze still causing trouble early Monday was around the town of Serta, some 125 miles northeast of Lisbon, where just over 700 firefighters and nine aircraft were in action.Agency spokeswoman Patricia Gaspar says authorities are leaving the full contingent of firefighters in place because high winds and temperatures could re-ignite blazes.Portugal is blighted annually by summer wildfires, and one last month killed 64 people.There were also forest fires in Corsica, in the city of Carros close to Nice and in the resort town of Saint-Tropez, authorities said.In the nearby Var region, another fire burned over 200 hectares at Gigaro, close to Saint-Tropez.The blaze in Carros burned a house, three vehicles and a warehouse and led to some homes being evacuated, according to regional authorities.More than 270 firefighters were on the scene.On the island of Corsica, residents were evacuated from homes at the edge of the town of Biguglia, on the island's northeastern coast.</s>Wildfires raging through the French Riviera have forced holidaymakers to flee as parts of the region including campsites were evacuated.

British tourists were among thousands caught up in the safety operation as local authorities said flames had engulfed some 4,000 hectares (9,880 acres) of land in southern France.

La Londe-les-Maures, nearby Bormes-les-Mimosas and La Lavandou in the Var area of Provence saw some 10,000 people evacuated, including 3,000 campers, a statement from the prefecture said.

Four tracker planes and a firefighting aircraft had formed part of the emergency response after fires became ferocious at around 11pm on Tuesday.

Hundreds of firefighters are battling to bring several blazes under control since they broke out on Monday, including the one which has scorched 800 hectares in Var and another in northern Corsica.

The picturesque corner of southern France has long been a popular holiday destination for British visitors and is at the start of the summer season.

Planes were seen contributing to the emergency response, after French authorities asked the European Union for help.Lisa Minot, a British journalist who had been visiting a campsite at Bormes-les-Mimosas in Var, claimed thousands of people were asked to leave in the middle of the night.

She told BBC News on Wednesday morning: "The fires have been going all night, our campsite has its own beach and at two o'clock this morning they evacuated everybody.

"There are about 1,000 pitches in the campsite, they evacuated everyone down to the beach and we have been here ever since.

"There are very strong winds ... and this is what is hampering the efforts to fight the fire, because they really cannot predict where the flames are going to go next."

She said around 3,000 people had been moved to the beach and asked not to move by authorities, adding: "The sun has come up and it is going to be 31 degrees today, but because of the pool smoke that is over the entire sky, the sun is not as hot as it probably could be."
Firefighters battle wildfires across southern France, including one in Corsica.