French president pledges support on visit to fire zone, vows: ‘We will win this battle together’ - AP News

What the report says

Associated Press reported that French President Emmanuel Macron visited a firefighting coordination center in Bordeaux as emergency crews battled major wildfires in southwest France. Macron urged firefighters to remain resilient, warned the effort would take time and pledged national support, saying the country would “win this battle together.” Interior Minister Laurent Nunez was shown with him during the July 27 visit to the departmental fire and rescue operational center.

The fires have hit the Gironde region and areas near Bordeaux, including communities such as Lacanau, Le Porge and Le Las, according to AP photo captions and article text. AP reported that tens of thousands of people have been forced from their homes, with one overnight evacuation involving 55,000 people and the regional total rising above 220,000. The blaze was described as having burned an area four times the size of Paris, and Macron called it France’s worst fire crisis since World War II.

Fire crews were working with thousands of personnel on the ground and aircraft dropping water and retardant from above. AP said firefighters were trying to gain ground before a forecast rise in temperatures that could make containment harder. The scale of the response has drawn international assistance, with about a dozen countries sending planes, helicopters, firefighters or other support to France and Spain.

Spain is also facing severe fires, including in Ávila west of Madrid and Pelayos de la Presa in Madrid province. AP reported that fires in the two countries have displaced more than 330,000 people in all, underscoring the regional strain on emergency services during extreme summer fire conditions.