The picture left gives you some idea of the damage. Part of the village is visible at the bottom right of the hill. The central part of the hill was burnt out and you may be able to see green vegetation on either side (click on the picture for a better view). A fire track is visible up the left hand ridge of the hill and near the bottom of the track you might be able to see a fire truck coming down. We could see fire tenders coming gingerly down the hills, all morning, their night's work done. Many firemen slept the night on the hills which are criss-crossed by many tracks, known as DFCI's, and they were built specifically so that fire tenders could get into the hills for such emergencies. They are also great for walks, but some of them are very steep, hence the vehicles descending very slowly. We slept soundly knowing that the pompiers were there, looking after us all night. We were told that a small fire started again at 2.30 am, but was quickly jumped on. Thank you, chaps. The helicopter continued to circle this morning and in the background you could see the charred, devastated hillsides. We toured the village, by car, to see that the fire had literally stopped at the boundary fence of all the houses to the west of the village. They must have been very scared. After a walk round the village, we realised that the field next door to us was also scorched and we were no more than 1 metre from the flames. What we hadn't appreciated was the random nature of the outbreak of fires. They happened in all kinds of small areas obviously started by sparks from the main fire being fanned by the wind. All this happened whilst we were safely in Montmirat. That was close! This is Alex Hampshire reporting from the middle of the blazing inferno, back to you in the studio!***
Tonight, for a change, we went out for dinner. Jill and Harry have lots of visitors, and invite us because they are gluttons for punishment. Each course was cooked by a different side of their family and jolly good it was too.
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