More than 200,000 people have been forced to evacuate or shelter indoors as massive wildfires sweep across Spain and France, with authorities declaring a national emergency in Madrid and ordering total evacuations in some of Europe's most popular tourist destinations.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez reported that 167,000 people have been evacuated in France, while Spain's interior ministry put its evacuation total at 45,000. The blazes have proven particularly devastating in France, which recorded its highest-ever area of land burned by wildfires in a single year. According to the EU's European Forest Fire Information System, 69,473 hectares have burned in France since the start of the year, surpassing the previous record of 66,337 hectares set in 2022. The fires continue to rage in the south-western Gironde and Landes regions, prompting authorities to order evacuations of multiple areas west of Bordeaux, including parts of three suburbs and the city's airport.
In Spain, the situation has grown increasingly dire. As of late July, 32 large wildfires have been recorded this year compared with seven during the same period last year. From January to mid-July, 131,113 hectares of land burned in wildfires, dwarfing the 24,133 hectares burned during the equivalent period in 2023. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez revealed that 130,000 hectares have burned since January, exceeding the annual average of 100,000 hectares over the past decade.
The scale and intensity of this year's fires have prompted urgent calls for action on climate change. Sánchez described the situation as "complex" while visiting affected areas, noting uncertainty about wind conditions despite dropping temperatures. He called for a "national pact against the climate emergency," emphasizing that the fires are "exceeding scientific predictions" and that climate change is causing increasingly severe blazes.
Both countries have mobilized significant resources to combat the wildfires. France has deployed more than 500 military personnel to assist firefighting teams, with additional soldiers being sent to the affected regions. The government has distributed 1.5 million face masks to protect people from harmful smoke exposure. France also requested its armed forces deploy an Airbus A400M military transport aircraft to help tackle the blazes.
The evacuation of popular tourist destinations, including the Cap Ferret peninsula on the Atlantic coast, has complicated response efforts during peak summer travel season. French Foreign Minister Éléonore Caroit urged travelers not to abandon plans for unaffected regions, stressing that "entire areas are fine" and that most of France remains unaffected.
Meanwhile, wildfires are not limited to France and Spain. Scotland's First Minister John Swinney declared a wildfire in Cairngorms national park a "very serious situation," prompting evacuation of the village of Nethy Bridge after police declared a major incident.