French Authorities Evacuate Towns Near Bordeaux as Wildfires Advance Across France and Spain
Authorities deployed thousands of firefighters and troops as the blazes destroyed homes, closed Bordeaux Airport and forced more than 300,000 people to flee.
- A sudden shift in wind conditions has transformed a massive wildfire in southwestern France into a large, self-sustaining inferno, forcing authorities to order emergency evacuations for several western suburbs of Bordeaux, including areas surrounding the city's airport.
- The French Interior Ministry reported that the fast-moving blaze has already scorched over 140 square kilometers of forest in the Gironde and Landes departments, prompting President Emmanuel Macron to mobilize military support and officially request assistance from the European Union.
- In a dramatic rescue operation on the Atlantic coast, small water taxis, personal watercraft, and larger rescue boats successfully evacuated thousands of stranded holidaymakers and residents from the upmarket Cap Ferret peninsula after flames completely blocked the only exit road.
- Across the border, the Spanish government declared its first-ever national emergency for a wildfire as two massive blazes merged into a single out-of-control front just west of Madrid, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents from the capital's surrounding towns.
- Regional leaders in both countries described the crises as completely unprecedented, attributing the rapid, erratic behavior of the flames to a perfect storm of blistering triple-digit summer temperatures, severe long-term drought, and relentless heavy winds.
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407 Articles
As massive fires ravaging the Gironde region of France approach the borders of Bordeaux, 220,000 people have been evacuated. Thousands of victims seeking refuge in the city's exhibition center endure an anxious wait, while firefighters and farmers who have arrived with their tractors struggle to contain the flames.
MEMBERS of the 855th Firefighting Squadron of the Croatian Air Force are helping to extinguish large fires in France, in the Bordeaux area. In the first two days, they have released 402 tons of water, and the situation remains very complex.
France and Spain are grappling with some of the most severe wildfires they have ever faced, forcing the evacuation of more than 330,000 people. Numerous flights have been canceled or delayed.
As the flames arrive about 15 kilometres from the Bordeaux metropolis, thousands of firefighters are trying to contain them, fearing the upcoming rise of temperatures.Thousands of firefighters, aided by military personnel but also by desperate farmers or residents who remained in spite of the evacuations, are preparing to face an unusual and erratic fire on Sunday's fifth night, some 15 kilometres from the Bordeaux metropolis.
Hindustan Times
Blue Water Healthy LivingWildfires threaten Bordeaux as France and Spain battle blazes
EUROPE-WEATHER/WILDFIRE (WRAPUP 5, PIX, TV):WRAPUP 5-Wildfires threaten Bordeaux as France and Spain battle blazes
Wildfires threaten French cities as Europe battles blazes
Wildfires advanced towards the outskirts of the historic city of Bordeaux, at the heart of France's winelands, on Sunday as France and Spain battled blazes that have forced the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people.
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