France wildfire exposes 400 WWII munitions in Le Porge

A forest fire near Bordeaux has exposed around 400 World War II shells and ammunition pieces in the village of Le Porge, where all residents returned home on Monday after days of demining operations, local authorities said.

The munitions were found in an area where more than 180 homes were ravaged by flames. Fire commander Thomas Mimiague said blasts heard during the fire were first thought to be exploding gas cylinders, but may have been the shells.

The recovered munitions were both German and French. They were mainly mortar shells, with some high-explosive anti-tank shells.

“We don’t really know why they're there; we think they were just abandoned,” Mimiague said.

The Bordeaux-region wildfire, described as the most serious blaze in France since 1949, has been brought under control after burning more than 40,000 hectares in about 10 days. It did not reach the region’s major wine estates.