Polish firefighters to help battle fires in France

A team of 146 Polish firefighters will help fight heavy fires in the south of France, the Polish interior ministry announced on Thursday.

The Poles will also be aided by 49 firetrucks.

The ministry told PAP that the Polish firemen were going to France on a 10-day mission in response to French requests for international aid directed to the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC), the hub of the EU's Civil Protection Mechanism.

The firefighters will depart for France on Thursday, the ministry wrote in a statement.

To date the fires in France have consumed over 700 hectares of forestland, forcing around 3,000 people to evacuate their homes.