Aude: A fire is burning over 2,000 hectares near Narbonne, the A9 motorway closed until further notice.

A massive fire swept through more than 2,000 hectares of vegetation near Narbonne on Monday and again during the night of Monday to Tuesday, leading to the closure of the A9 motorway and forcing residents of a hamlet to leave their homes, which were eventually engulfed in flames.

Up to 1,070 firefighters battled the flames and five of them were "very slightly injured," the prefecture of Aude, a department already affected by three forest fires in one week, said in a statement published early Tuesday morning.

The fire "is still active," state services warn, and traffic conditions "will remain very disrupted." The A9 motorway, which connects France to Spain along the Mediterranean, is expected to remain closed near Narbonne until further notice. Many drivers have found themselves trapped in gigantic traffic jams, with some resorting to spending the night in their cars.

Some 150 people were housed at the Narbonne exhibition center, while others were housed in halls or gymnasiums in Sigean, Ferrals-des-Corbières, and Portel-des-Corbières. Five civilians were also "taken into care, including a child," and the flames damaged several houses and destroyed a workshop and a stable, the prefecture added.

In the commune of Bages, which borders the A9, residents of the hamlet of Prat-de-Cest were forced to evacuate their homes for fear of the flames. "The hamlet was very badly hit, with several houses burning. I don't know if there are any casualties," said Mayor Jean-Louis Rio. At around 6 a.m. on Tuesday, authorities maintained the lockdown measures in place in several neighborhoods south of Narbonne, the hamlet of Prat-de-Cest in the commune of Bages, and the commune of Peyriac-de-Mer.

Although the tramontane wind is expected to weaken slightly on Tuesday, the risk of fire remains very high due to "weather conditions quite similar" to those of Monday, Météo-France warned. The fire, which started around 3 p.m. on Monday, under unknown circumstances, at a vineyard near the D613 departmental road in the Corbières massif, spread quickly, fanned by the tramontane wind with gusts blowing at 90 km/h, according to Météo-France forecaster Adrien Warnan.

In addition, vegetation dried out by a severe rainfall deficit of 69% in June, plus the prolonged heatwave of recent days, forms a formidable incendiary cocktail, continued Adrien Warnan. An investigation has been opened by the Narbonne prosecutor's office to determine the causes of the fire. As soon as daybreak, Dash and Canadair aircraft were scheduled to resume their rotations.