PARIS — Hundreds of firefighters on Tuesday battled a fire racing through forests near the French Riviera that forced the evacuation of thousands of people from homes and vacation spots.

Two firefighters have been injured in the blaze that started Monday evening inland from the coastal city of Toulon, civil security service spokesman Alexandre Jouassard said.

Fueled by powerful Mediterranean winds, the fire had consumed some 5,000 hectares (12,000 acres) of forest by Tuesday morning, according to the administration for the surrounding Var region.

Some 6,000 people have been evacuated from homes in the region and a dozen campgrounds, and vacationers were locked down in a holiday center for Air France employees.

Backed by water-dumping planes and helicopters, more than 900 firefighters worked Tuesday to contain the blaze, the civil security service said. Local authorities blocked access to forest across the region and urged caution.

Fierce forest fires have swept across southern Europe and North Africa in recent weeks.