More Than 200,000 People Flee As Wildfires Tear Through France And Spain
More than 200,000 people have fled their homes as massive wildfires swept across southwestern France and central Spain, forcing large-scale evacuations and leaving emergency services struggling to contain the fast-moving blazes.
Authorities said about 141,000 people were evacuated from the Gironde and Landes departments in France, while another 60,000 were forced to leave their homes in central Spain as fires spread rapidly through forests and nearby communities.
Firefighters in both countries were overwhelmed by the intensity of the fires, fuelled by high temperatures and the long-term effects of climate change.
Spanish firefighters said the flames spread so quickly and violently that they could not be fought directly while in France, some residents escaped by boat after fire engulfed the tourist area along the Atlantic coast.
Although dozens of firefighters were injured, authorities reported no deaths in either country. Residents fled by car as police went door to door urging people to leave while thick smoke rose above surrounding woodlands.
France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said the wildfire in southwestern France was moving towards Bordeaux after consuming about 140 square kilometres of land.
French President Emmanuel Macron directed Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu to activate the government’s crisis response unit and ordered the armed forces to provide maximum support to civilian emergency services.
