Families describe wildfire 'nightmare' as Marseille came close to disaster

Standing by the charred remains of the Marseille wildfire, you appreciate how close France's second-largest city came to disaster.

The inferno raced down the hillside towards the northern suburbs, fanned by 45mph winds. At its peak, the fire front was moving by 1.2km every minute.

Somehow - whether it was heroics of the 1,000 firefighters or just chance - the flames skirted the very edge of houses on the hill. Then it came to a halt just the width of a road from a complex of apartment blocks.

We met John, who stood out on the street with his young family, watching the flames advance towards his house. He told me the smoke was so dense he could not even see the helicopters hovering overhead, dropping tonnes of water on the burning scrub.

He added: "The clouds were black, smoke everywhere. We had up to one, two centimetres of ashes on our balconies and our terrace, everywhere.

The pool was completely black. This is the first time this has ever happened, so it was a big shock.

"My son was crying and I had to tell him to calm down, the world is not ending yet. "But we're happy that this is all over.

Yesterday was a nightmare, but now we are waking from that bad dream." Not everybody has been so lucky. At least 60 houses have been damaged, some destroyed.

According to the authorities, more than 700 hectares have been burnt so far. The intensity of the fire has eased, but it's still active on the edges where there is grass and scrub, tinder dry from weeks of scorching heat and not a drop of rain.

A smell of smoke lingers in the air. Two dozen or so people are in hospital.

Another 110 have minor injuries. The French interior minister said it was incredible nobody died.

Summer wildfires are common around the Mediterranean. But the fire season has started early this year.

Read more:More than 110 injured in wildfireWildfire is 'at the gates' of Marseille And with temperatures still high, and no sign of rain, the risk of more - and perhaps worse - fires remain high. People living on the edge of urban areas would have once gazed out on the forests and seen beauty.

But having witnessed wildfires sweep so close to their homes, they will now understand them as a potential threat..