After 48 hours of intense firefighting, the two fires in the Fontainebleau forest, in Seine-et-Marne (77), have been brought under control at last. The departmental prefect confirmed: the blazes, which have consumed more than 2,050 hectares of this iconic massif since Sunday, July 12, 2026, are no longer spreading. Note, under control does not mean extinguished, and 800 firefighters remain on the ground.
On the judicial side, six people are now in police custody, and two of them, including a volunteer firefighter, have admitted to starting the fires.
A contained fire is one that no longer advances, even though it hasn’t been extinguished. It’s a key milestone, reached Tuesday evening thanks to more favorable weather, but it opens a new, lengthy and meticulous phase of work.
This Wednesday morning, around 800 firefighters are still on duty to prevent any flare-ups. The bulk of operations now focuses on "noyage"—treating, one by one, the remaining incandescent spots in the soil, roots, or fallen branches to ensure no embers can reignite. The spokesperson for the Seine-et-Marne Departmental Fire and Rescue Service explained this to Agence France-Presse.
The danger has a name: zombie fires. Because the Fontainebleau forest sits on peat, embers can smolder underground for days. Fire crews will thus stay on alert for a while longer, before considering reopening the access routes and pulling back a portion of the teams.
Three moderate flare-ups were detected in the Grand Parquet area, near the town of Fontainebleau, according to the spokesperson for SDIS 77. It was there that the second fire, which broke out on Monday afternoon, scorched approximately 450 hectares.
The main hotspot, meanwhile, emerged Sunday around the A6 motorway and had burned nearly 1,600 hectares in two days. Together, they account for more than 2,050 hectares, about 10% of the massif.
The aerial relief operation was slightly scaled back this Wednesday: three Canadairs, a Dash, two water-bomber helicopters and a command helicopter, compared with four Canadairs and bombers the day before. A welcome logistical development: the Dash can now refuel at Melun, just a 15-minute flight away, whereas it previously had to head to the Vosges or the Maine-et-Loire, about an hour and a half out.
The probe into the origins of the fires has led to six people being held in custody. Two suspects, arrested the previous day near the sites where the blazes began or reignited, have admitted their involvement.
The first, born in 2007, with no prior criminal record and a volunteer firefighter in Fontainebleau, admitted to lighting a small pile of twigs with a lighter and some gasoline. His confession led to a suspension by the SDIS of Seine-et-Marne. The second, also born in 2007 and without a record, acknowledged that the ignition was accidental, having discarded his cigarette toward the Grand Parquet, near the pheasantry. Investigations are ongoing for the other individuals taken into custody.
On the road, the situation remains constrained. The A6 motorway stays closed in the area, as does a stretch of D152 and a section of D105, all shut to clear the way for emergency services. A gradual reopening of the routes is being considered, but it will depend on how the firefighting operations progress. Check Bison Futé before any trip, and keep in mind that animals fleeing the flames can appear on the roads in the area.
For residents exposed to the smoke, the safety guidance remains in effect:
Approximately 800 people had to leave their homes across the three communes most affected. Residents will be allowed to return only once the fire is fully contained. The official situation update is provided by the state services in Seine-et-Marne, and access to the massif remains prohibited, as the National Forests Office reminds us.
On the weather front, the pressure is finally easing. From 6 a.m. this Wednesday, July 15, 2026, no French department is anymore under a red heatwave alert. Temperatures remain very high across much of the country, but the sweltering air mass that had lingered for days is beginning to retreat from the west, according to Météo-France. A welcome respite for the firefighters in Fontainebleau, who are shaving a few degrees off in their fight against the embers.
