A fast-spreading wildfire that broke out earlier in the day was moving towards Marseille, the city said in a statement on X on Tuesday (July 8), adding that residents should leave the streets clear to avoid hindering emergency services.

Fanned by winds of up to 70 kilometres per hour (43.5 miles per hour) the fire led to the closure of Marseille Provence airport on Tuesday.

The local fire service initially said on X that 168 firefighters had been deployed to fight the blaze of around 30 hectares near the town of Les Pennes-Mirabeau, north of Marseille. Fire engines and helicopters were also being used.

A spokeswoman at the mayor's office for the 15th and 16th boroughs of Marseille, which border Les Pennes-Mirabeau, said the area on the outer limits of the city was increasingly threatened by the fire, and covered in thick smoke.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

BETWEEN MARSEILLE AND LES PENNES-MIRABEAU, FRANCE (JULY 8, 2025) (CLPRESS - No use France)

1. VARIOUS OF WILDFIRE BURNING NEAR HOUSES

2. TREE ON FIRE NEAR HOUSE

3. FIRE AND SMOKE NEAR HOUSES

4. FIRE BURNING

5. FIREFIGHTING PLANE DROPPING EXTINGUISHING AGENT ONTO FIRE

6. PLANES FLYING NEAR PLUME OF SMOKE

7. VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTING PLANES DROPPING WATER ONTO FIRE

8. FIRE AND PLUME OF BLACK SMOKE

9. VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTING PLANES FLYING BY, DROPPING WATER

10. PLANES FLYING NEAR SMOKE

11. FIREFIGHTING PLANE DROPPING WATER

12. VARIOUS OF SMOKE

13. HELICOPTER FLYING BY

14. HELICOPTER DROPPING WATER ONTO FIRE

15. FIREFIGHTING PLANE FLYING BY

16. PLUME OF BLACK SMOKE SEEN FROM GRAVEYARD

17. SMOKE NEAR HOUSES

18. SMOKE AND TREES

19. SMOKE BLOWING OVER LANDSCAPE