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Wildfires force mass evacuations
Wildfires in Spain and France forced some 200,000 people to evacuate, with extreme temperatures topping 102°F (39°C) and hot winds fueling blazes across central Spain near Madrid and Ávila and southwestern France in the Gironde and Landes departments around Bordeaux.
“Extreme temperatures topping 102°F (39°C), combined with hot winds”
EarthSky said the fires prompted multiple regional emergency declarations and that, as of this morning, the fires had burned record acreage while destroying only about 50 homes in France so far.
The evacuations also reached Spain’s capital area, where smoke drifted into Madrid and prompted the temporary shutdown of NASA’s Deep Space Communications Complex in Robledo de Chavela, about 60–65 km (37–40 miles) west of the city center.
RTHK reported that France hustled 197,000 people from areas around Bordeaux and that Spain evacuated 70,000 people from villages west of Madrid as the fires raged for two or three days.
RTHK added that the French army was drafted in to fight what Laurent Nunez called the worst wildfire the country has ever seen, while both countries asked for EU help.
NASA facility threatened, officials act
EarthSky said the wildfires west of Madrid reached NASA’s Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex, prompting a temporary shutdown of one of the agency’s key deep-space tracking facilities.
NASA told EarthSky that the fires “passed through” the Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex in Robledo de Chavela, and that all personnel were safely evacuated.
In France, CNN reported that French authorities ordered the complete evacuation of the Cap Ferret peninsula on Friday and launched boats from three piers, with the peninsula about 70 kilometers (43 miles) west of Bordeaux.
CNN quoted Marc Vermeulen saying the fire grew by up to 1,000 hectares (4 square miles) every hour overnight and that burning embers caused the fire to spread from house to house.
CNN also said the Spanish government declared a national emergency and that, as of Friday afternoon local time, Spanish authorities had evacuated more than 19,000 people from a cluster of towns about 75 kilometers (47 miles) west of Madrid.
Climate links and EU firefighting
Multiple outlets tied the wildfire conditions to heat and drought, with EarthSky saying the fires were fueled by record heat, drought, and strong winds and that firefighters in Spain admitted the fires were so fast and violent that they could not be tackled head on.
“Firefighters in Spain admitted the fires were so fast and violent that they could not be tackled head on”
RTHK said scientists warned that climate change was making drought conditions more frequent and making weather emergencies more extreme, while also noting that the fires were fueled by forests left tinder dry by successive heatwaves since May.
The Independent reported that the UK government advised people in Spain to avoid travelling through affected areas of Madrid and Avila and that, in France, people should follow advice of local authorities and check with accommodation or travel providers before travelling.
CGTN said French President Emmanuel Macron ordered military support after seeking EU assistance, and it reported that Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced that 1,000 military personnel would be deployed to battle the flames.
CGTN also said the European Commission was sending four water-bombing planes to Spain and three to France, as officials warned the blaze was moving towards Bordeaux and described the scale as unprecedented.
