Wildfires: 141,000 people evacuated in France; Macron calls in the army. In Spain, 63,000 people have been displaced
So far, 3,100 hectares have been burnt along the Atlantic coast. Hundreds of people have fled by boat from the Cap Ferret peninsula
Key points
The wildfire situation in south-western France shows no sign of improving. Hundreds of people have fled by boat from the Cap Ferret peninsula, in western France, after the authorities ordered its evacuation due to a rapidly advancing fire. So far, more than 400 people have been brought to safety from the peninsula, which stretches along the French Atlantic coast to the west of the city of Bordeaux, according to local authorities.
The Spanish government has declared a national state of emergency after forest fires forced the evacuation of around 63,000 people from villages near Madrid, whilst in the south-west of France , the number of people evacuated since Wednesday evening due to the fires ravaging the south-west of France has risen to at least 141,000, with 110,000 people evacuated in the Gironde department and 31,000 in the Landes department , according to the French Ministry of the Interior, which has updated the figures.
Further evacuations are being prepared in the Bordeaux area, according to the Prefecture.
Macron has called on the Armed Forces “to mobilise to provide maximum support to the civil protection services”
The French President, Emmanuel Macron, has reported that France has requested the activation of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism due to the wildfires it is currently facing. “The situation remains very tense due to the wildfires affecting the country, particularly in the Gironde. My thoughts are with our firefighters and rescue services who are battling tirelessly on the front line against the flames. Their courage deserves our utmost respect. France has requested the activation of the European Union’s civil protection mechanism”, Macron wrote on X overnight, explaining that “we will shortly be able to count on reinforcements in the form of two Croatian Canadair aircraft, two Portuguese Air Tractor aircraft and two heavy Black Hawk helicopters, one Czech and one Slovak”.
Later this evening, Macron called on the Armed Forces “to mobilise to provide maximum support to the civil protection services” in the fight against the fires in France. This was reported by sources close to him.
