A villager has been charged with arson in the province of Larache, in northern Morocco, the region most affected by violent forest fires, a judicial source learned on Thursday.
“A resident of a town in Larache was brought before the king’s prosecutor and charged with arson,” he said.
“He will be tried in preventive detention,” he added, stressing that the investigation did not conclude that there was “fraud.”
Death of a volunteer fighting the flames
According to the newspaper Al Ahdath Al Maghrbia, the 40-year-old man, arrested on Tuesday, confessed to having done work on the fence of his house and having set fire to the remains of materials that he wanted to get rid of. But the fire, fueled by a strong wind, spread quickly.
The province of Larache has been particularly affected by the forest fires that have claimed three lives and destroyed thousands of hectares since mid-July. A volunteer who was fighting the flames perished in the neighboring province of Taounate. No casualties were reported Thursday.
The firefighting services managed to control the seven main fires in Larache on Thursday and were in the process of circumscribing minor outbreaks, according to local sources.
More than 10,000 hectares smoked in the fires
But in the Tetouan region, near Tangier, strong winds and plumes of opaque smoke hampered firefighters’ operations to contain a forest fire that damaged 400 hectares, despite Canadair’s 35 rotations, according to local authorities.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the total area affected by forest fires in various regions of northern Morocco reaches 10,300 hectares since mid-July. Morocco is suffering from scorching temperatures, in a context of exceptional drought and water stress.
Source: BFM TV
