Thousands of holidaymakers were evacuated from resorts on France's Cote d'Azur as fire devastated huge areas of forest land in the popular southeastern tourist region.
Fanned by strong winds, the blaze swept through 6,000 hectares of forest and scrubland and at one stage covered a distance of 25 kilometres over three hours. About 1,300 firefighters are battling the flames.
Some 5,000 people, including many holidaymakers, were evacuated overnight as homes became encircled by fire, and four camping sites were shut.
No one was seriously injured, officials said, but several houses and around 40 cars were destroyed.
"It's the biggest fire we've seen in 15 years," said a fire services official in Saint Aygulf, a coastal resort between Cannes and Toulon.