Over 200,000 evacuated as wildfires sweep France and Spain
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More than 200,000 people have been evacuated or ordered to remain indoors as massive wildfires spread across France and Spain, prompting Spain to declare its first national emergency for a wildfire and France to evacuate the Cap Ferret peninsula on its Atlantic coast.
French authorities ordered the evacuation of Cap Ferret "village by village" as an intense wildfire burned through more than 19,000 hectares of forest. More than 110,000 people, including thousands of holidaymakers staying at campsites and rental homes, were evacuated over two days. Boats were used to evacuate hundreds after the fire threatened to cut off the peninsula's only access road.
The blaze, which began on Wednesday near Saumos, west of Bordeaux, has destroyed about 80 houses. Around 800 firefighters and four water-bombing aircraft were deployed, but officials said the fire remained uncontrolled.
A second wildfire near the holiday resort of Biscarrosse has burned more than 2,500 hectares and forced the evacuation of about 31,000 people. More than 600 firefighters were battling the blaze.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 32 wildfires were burning across the country, with about 50,000 hectares scorched so far this year, nearly four times the area burned by the same date last year. President Emmanuel Macron said France had activated the European Union's civil protection mechanism and would receive firefighting aircraft and helicopters from Croatia, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
In Spain, the government declared a national emergency after multiple wildfires threatened areas near Madrid and the neighbouring province of Ávila. More than 63,000 people were evacuated or ordered to remain indoors as two major fires merged and a third approached. Authorities warned the fires remained uncontained and could exceed current firefighting capacity.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said all available resources had been deployed and thanked emergency personnel. Spain has also requested assistance through the EU civil protection mechanism.
Spain's environment ministry said 29 major forest fires had been recorded so far in 2026, compared with an average of nine during the same period over the past decade. Nearly 114,800 hectares have burned this year, compared with about 25,100 hectares by the same time last year.
Spanish police said one man had been arrested and another was under investigation in connection with a wildfire in Ávila after they ignored a ban on using heavy machinery, which may have caused sparks that started the fire.