Bushfires in New Caledonia keep burning across much of the country in what is feared to be the most devastating season since 2001.
Photo: Photo / AFP
Nineteen square kilometres of vegetation has been burning near Noumea since the weekend - reportedly after drunk people started a barbecue in defiance of a fire ban.
Dozens of fire fighters have been deployed as well as helicopters to contain the blaze as it threatens farms.
The affected area, near Mont-Dore, provides the sources of about a third of New Caledonia's drinking water.
Large fires are burning in several locations in the north of the main island while a fire on the Isle of Pines has been brought under control after days.
So far, about 300 square kilometres of vegetation has been burnt since the middle of September.
