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Evacuations as fires surge
More than 200,000 people fled raging wildfires in southwestern France and central Spain on Friday, as residents escaped towns near Madrid and Bordeaux by car and, in some cases, by boat.
“More than 200,000 people flee raging wildfires in France and Spain, some escaping by boat More than 200,000 people flee raging wildfires in France and Spain, some escaping by boat ARCACHON, France (AP) — Massive forest fires forced the evacuation of some 200,000 people in southwestern France and central Spain on Friday, with residents fleeing towns near Madrid and Bordeaux as the flames raged out of control”
France’s Interior minister Laurent Nunez said the wildfire that earlier forced the evacuation of the Cap Ferret peninsula had swept across 140 square kilometers and was moving east toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area.
In Spain, the government declared a national emergency as blazes in Madrid and the nearby province of Ávila prompted the evacuation of some 60,000 people from towns west of the capital, according to the Spanish interior ministry.
The blaze started on Wednesday near the Cap Ferret peninsula, located 60 kilometers from Bordeaux, and French authorities said 53 homes and a campsite were destroyed while 42 firefighters were injured.
AP also reported that French President Emmanuel Macron asked Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu to activate the government’s crisis response unit and instructed the armed forces to mobilize for reinforcement to civilian emergency services.
EU help and political push
France formally requested activation of the European Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism, and the EU’s crisis commissioner Hadja Lahbib confirmed that “following France’s activation of the EU’s civil protection mechanism, the EU is providing assistance and deploying 3 water bomber aircraft.”
Emmanuel Macron said the reinforcements would include “two Croatian Canadair firefighting aircraft, two Portuguese Air Tractor aircraft, and two heavy-lift Black Hawk helicopters from the Czech Republic and Slovakia,” as Spain declared a national emergency over wildfires near Madrid and Avila.
In Madrid, regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso called the merged blaze “the worst in Madrid’s history,” while France 24 quoted her describing it as “the perfect storm of very high temperatures and ceaseless winds that aren't letting up.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez warned of “a dramatic situation,” and the Guardian’s live blog described Spain’s rare national emergency as forcing more than 10,000 people to evacuate.
The Guardian also reported that Nicanor Sen, the central government’s delegate to the Castilla y León region, said there was “very little time left” before the fires could merge.
What’s at risk next
Authorities said the fires were spreading under extreme conditions, with AP reporting that firefighters and authorities were caught off guard by the virulence of the fires, which were fueled by high temperatures and the long-term effects of climate change.
“Out-of-control fires in France and Spain: more than 160,000 evacuated”
In France, Nunez said the wildfire was “extremely difficult to bring under control” after a wind shift, and he said the response would be reorganized to fight it from the ground and prevent it from advancing toward Bordeaux.
In Spain, the NBC News report said the national emergency meant the interior ministry took charge of overseeing firefighting efforts as regions struggled with multiple blazes being fanned by a heatwave.
The Guardian’s live blog described evacuations ordered for the Cap Ferret peninsula before 10am, using “hundreds of mobilised boats or the only road linking the area with the mainland,” underscoring how quickly the situation was forcing movement.
Across the region, the AP report said townsfolk fled by car while police went door to door to tell people to leave as large plumes of smoke rose from neighboring woodlands, with the fires threatening the Bordeaux metropolitan area.
