Bordeaux, France. Firefighters continued efforts on Tuesday to contain major wildfires that have prompted the evacuation of tens of thousands of people in France and Spain, as Western Europe prepared for another heatwave.
Firefighting operations
In the Bordeaux region, firefighters contained a forest blaze overnight. Crews were seeking to use more favourable weather conditions before higher temperatures were expected to return from Wednesday.
French President Emmanuel Macron told emergency workers in Bordeaux late on Monday that the situation was the most severe recorded since the Second World War.
“We are facing a completely unprecedented wildfire,” Macron said.
Evacuations in Spain
In Spain, authorities allowed residents of nine of 11 towns in the central province of Toledo to return home. However, fires remained out of control in Madrid and nearby provinces, prompting heightened vigilance.
One evacuee described the fires as a “red hell”, saying residents fled with little more than the clothes they were wearing.
Heat and drought
The fires have affected areas already hit by an exceptionally hot and dry summer. Europe, described as the world’s fastest-warming continent, has experienced record-breaking heatwaves this year.
Scientists say human-driven climate change is intensifying the heat and drought conditions that enable wildfires to spread more quickly, burn for longer and cause greater destruction.
Wildfires in France have burned more land than by the same point in any year since 2006. Nathalie Delattre, senator for Gironde, which includes Bordeaux, said conditions remained difficult despite progress in firefighting efforts.