Over 250,000 people have fled as wildfires ravage France and Spain, with the uncontrolled fires moving closer to Madrid and Bordeaux, and threatening the metropolitan areas.
The fires are the result of forests and vegetation becoming flammable due to drought and record-breaking heatwaves that have battered Western Europe since May. It has also disrupted the Tour de France and forced widespread evacuations.
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What is happening?
France and Spain have been at the epicentre of wildfire season, which accelerated in recent weeks. According to a Bloomberg report, before the weekend, the blazes had burned over 329,000 hectares across the continent. Amid these conditions, transport has also been affected.
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Key developments across the region
1- French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu had warned that "the coming hours could be difficult" in Gironde after weather forecasts deteriorated.
{{/usCountry}}1- French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu had warned that "the coming hours could be difficult" in Gironde after weather forecasts deteriorated.
{{/usCountry}}2- In Corsica, firefighters were struggling to contain a fire near Corte that had spread across over 800 hectares.
3- According to AFP, authorities said that the wildfire in Valencia, Spain killed one person before firefighters brought it under control.
4- In France, the government ordered 500 more soldiers to the wildfire zone in the southwest, bringing the total number deployed to 1,500.
5- The wildfires have forced the evacuation of over 250,000 people. The AFP report further stated that interior ministry of Spain said that 60,000 people had been evacuated from villages west of Madrid. Meanwhile, French authorities have said that 220,000 been evacuated from forest fires.
Visuals have surfaced from Southern Europe:
Visuals emerging from the affected regions show stretches of land completely engulfed in orange flames, highlighting the vast scale of the devastating wildfire.
In another video, dense smoke billows into the sky as the wildfire continues to ravage the forested area.
What the leaders and authorities are saying
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has said that the priority is for the lives and protecting the inhabited areas.
“Our priority, our thinking, our aim, is for your lives, to save your lives and protect inhabited areas,” Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez said at a press conference, according to the Bloomberg report.
French President Emmanuel Macron has praised emergency crews and citizens in a post on X. He also added that the mayors, local elected officials, and State services are on the front lines.
Macron confirmed full civil and military deployment, including water-bomber planes and military transport aircraft.
"In these hours when the flames are severely testing our country, France reveals what it is: a united people, standing shoulder to shoulder. Thank you to our firefighters, our military personnel, the civil security forces, our gendarmes and police officers, as well as to the farmers and entrepreneurs, who through their commitment and courage, relentlessly combat the fires," Macron stated.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen informed, in a post on X, that five planes and two helicopters from the European Union’s disaster response fleet have joined the effort in France and four planes were set to arrive in Spain on Saturday.
"Europe stands alongside France and Spain in the face of the devastating wildfires ravaging them. 5 planes and 2 helicopters from the rescEU fleet are now deployed in France. And 4 planes are arriving in Spain today. Copernicus is also providing emergency mapping to support the response in both countries," she said.
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Voices from the ground
According to AFP, Antonio-Luis Rodriguez, who spent the night in the Villaviciosa de Odon sports hall with his son, was consumed with worry for his dog, left behind at his farm.
"It rained a lot this winter; the pastures were very overgrown," Rodriguez also said.
Inside the Villaviciosa de Odon gymnasium, volunteers tried to keep children occupied with games and colouring activities, while others distributed meals after the evacuees had spent their first night sleeping on cots.
Inside the Villaviciosa de Odón gymnasium, volunteers kept displaced children occupied with games while others distributed meals.
Elvira Menendez said that the volunteers "are taking good care of us; we were given blankets and facilities to shower."
"I am 80 years old, and I have never seen anything like this," she added.
(with inputs from agencies)