France: French authorities ordered nearly 4,000 more people to evacuate tourist sites on the Atlantic coast as returning heat threatened firefighters’ fragile hold on a vast wildfire west of Bordeaux.
The new evacuations came as the wildfire crisis across France and Spain continued, with fires forcing about 330,000 people to leave their homes and holiday accommodation.
Officials said the Gironde wildfire had been stabilised but not fully contained, meaning it could spread again as temperatures rise and humidity falls. Authorities said the blaze has already burned an area four times the size of Paris and forced around 220,000 people to evacuate in the Gironde region.
The precautionary evacuation order covered campsites, holiday villages, tourist residences and leisure parks around the resort of Lacanau. Officials said the move was taken as a preventive measure because of the increased risk posed by rising temperatures.
Firefighters managed to keep the wildfire under control overnight, but authorities warned that changing weather conditions could trigger fresh flare-ups.
The wildfire crisis has also intensified in Spain, where authorities are battling multiple blazes during the country’s fourth heatwave of the summer. Several fires remain out of control, including one of the largest in Spain’s recorded history.
Authorities across France and Spain continue to monitor the situation closely as firefighters work to contain the blazes and prevent further spread.
