Over 80,000 people have been evacuated from their homes after wildfires hit both France and Spain. Two major blazes have broken out, near the Spanish capital of Madrid, and in southern France, with the Spanish Prime Minister describing it as a 'dramatic situation'.
Spanish PM expresses solidarity
Spain's PM Pedro Sanchez posted on social media: 'We are experiencing a dramatic situation, not just in several Spanish regions but also in neighbouring countries. My solidarity with all the people who have been affected and been forced to leave their homes.'
Both countries have asked fellow European Union members for support, with French authorities ordering further mass evacuations along the Atlantic coast. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez has said 40,000 people have been evacuated in the Gironde area, and 23,000 in Landes.
International reinforcements
French President Emmanuel Macron said: 'We will soon be able to rely on reinforcements including two Croatian Canadair firefighting aircraft, two Portuguese Air Tractor aircraft, and two heavy-lift Black Hawk helicopters from the Czech Republic and Slovakia', and Spain's interior minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska adding that Italy and Greece are also sending two water-dumping planes.
Before he and his neighbours were evacuated from the village of Chapineria, less than an hour's drive west of Madrid, 33-year-old Joaquin Espinosa said: 'All around the town was smoke and fire, I was scared. Everything was fire and smoke, people were nervous.'
Local accounts
Speaking to national broadcaster TVE, Francisco Martinez, the mayor of the village of Burgohondo, said: 'In my 60 years I have never seen something like this in my village, I have never seen fire of these dimensions.'
The military emergency brigades and national firefighting brigades have mobilised to support regional firefighting units and water-dumping aircraft. In addition to the major fires that have required national involvement, there are nine other serious fires in different parts of Spain.
Temperatures are expected to top 39C in parts of the country today, with a high of 44C in Almeria, in the south-east region. The cause of the fires is yet to be identified, and Spanish television has showed video taken by retreating residents of walls of flames, with plumes of smoke rising above.
France and Italy also affected
In France, 38 square miles have been burned by the blaze, which has been raging since Wednesday near the Cap Ferret peninsula. Just 37 miles from Bordeaux, evacuations have taken place by road and boat, and hundreds of firefighters have been deployed, alongside additional ground and aerial reinforcements.
With another major wildfire in the French municipalities of Biscarrosse and Parentis-en-Born remaining uncontrolled, firefighters in Italy also responded to the continued flames ravaging Sicily. Seven of its nine provinces remain in the highest level of alert for wildfires, fuelled by temperatures which have topped 40C.
Climate change warnings
Scientists are warning that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness in the south-eastern Europe area, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. 2025 was the third-hottest year on record globally, bringing severe heatwaves across Europe, and this year is no different.
