27/07/2017 (Agence Europe) – As forest fires continue to rage in the south of France, European solidarity continues to be shown to help the French authorities contain the fires. On Wednesday evening 26 July, Italy offered a second Canadair aircraft to France through the EU civil protection mechanism, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Commissioner Christos Stylianides announced the same evening. The previous day, Italy had already responded to the request from France to the European Commission for assistance, immediately providing an initial Canadair aircraft (see EUROPE 11837). The Commission’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) continues to monitor the situation very closely in order to be able to match offers of assistance to needs. (AN)