Fears wildfires will hit France's missile and rocket factories sparking massive explosions
Firefighters have warned their battle is 'like David against Goliath' as flames creep towards stockpiles of hazardous materials
Fears are mounting that wildfires could hit France's missile and rocket factories within days - potentially sparking devastating explosions.
As the country continues to battle its worst wildfires in its modern history, at least seven sites containing dangerous materials now lie within a dozen miles of the flames.
With infernos sweeping across the continent, around 360,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in France and Spain.
On Sunday night, 55,000 people were evacuated, with French authorities describing the blazes as "apocalyptic".
Wildfires have now ripped through a total of 386 square miles of land in both nations.
The infernos raging on the outskirts of Bordeaux have now torn through an area four times the size of Paris.
Saint-Medard-en-Jalles in Gironde lies just 12 miles from the fire - with the former commune containing a mammoth 435-hectare facility which manufactures combustible materials for Ariane rockets and missiles.
A separate site in nearby Sainte-Helene produces ammonium perchlorate - a chemical agent which can cause devastating explosions if exposed to heat or fire.
ArianeGroup, which operates both sites, has stressed it has put “all necessary measures” in place to block the flames from reaching their facilities.
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that authorities have deployed defensive measures around the sites “given the nature of the products stored there”, according to Le Monde.
The inferno is also at risk of reaching Souge military camp in Martignas-sur-Jalle.
The site is home to around 2,800 hectares of natural land and is used as a base for the 13th Parachute Dragoon Regiment.
The camp is just a stone's throw away from leading aerospace firm Dassault, which produces commercial and military jets.
Although the blazes in France's southwest have been labelled "under control", there were 14 flare-ups recorded in the region, according to Gironde prefect Sophie Brocas.
The mayor of Marcheprime, Manuel Martinez, has called on the French Government to deploy addition resources for firefighters as he declared the town is "at war with an enemy”.
Meanwhile, National Federation of Firefighters of France spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Eric Brocardi warned that Gironde and southern France were battling wildfires of “exceptional intensity”.
'The fire is big. It’s like David against Goliath,' the National Federation of Firefighters of France spokesman said
Although the blazes in France's south west have been labelled 'under control', there were 14 flare-ups recorded in the region
“The fire is big. It’s like David against Goliath," he said.
On Monday, President Emmanuel Macron told emergency workers in Bordeaux that the country has been plunged into "a situation that is more difficult than at any time since the Second World War".
He added: “We must be realistic: the coming weeks will be tough, and we must persevere. The key is urgency, resilience.”
The new heatwave sweeping Europe has seen temperatures in France soar above 40C, with Mr Macron warning that the prolonged dry weather in recent weeks has massively increased the risk of blazes.
“We need to be lucid in coming weeks, it will be difficult,” the French President said.