Two public works employees have been charged with accidentally triggering the principal wildfire in the Fontainebleau forest, judicial authorities confirmed, after an investigation found a spark from a grinding tool ignited the blaze during repair work on an A6 motorway guardrail. The charges were filed on Wednesday, lifting the veil on the origin of the fire that has ravaged nearly 2,000 hectares of the storied woodland since Saturday.
President Emmanuel Macron visited the Trois-Pignons crisis command post to thank firefighters, as 120 military engineers from eastern France deployed to reinforce exhausted crews following a calm night on the fire front. The A6 motorway remains closed along a 25-kilometre stretch after fire damaged safety barriers.
Nationally, France has recorded more than 35,000 hectares burned since the start of 2026, according to Civil Security chief Julien Marion, underscoring the severity of this year's fire season.