NYT > World News In Area Hit by Blaze, French Officials Failed to Enforce Wildfire Rules Par :Catherine Porter · Ségolène Le Stradic and Samuel Granados 31 juillet 2026 à 06:25 Under French rules, homeowners must clear vegetation within roughly 50 yards of their houses. In the forests affected by France’s worst fire in decades, that didn’t happen. © Ed Jones/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesA burned area in the town of Le Porge on Monday, following a wildfire in southwestern France.