Gironde wildfires pick up as French region braces for new 40C heatwave

What the report says

BBC World News reports that firefighters in south-west France are trying to contain major wildfires in the Gironde region as forecasters expect another surge in heat, with temperatures in the area projected to reach 40C from Wednesday. About 2,000 firefighters have been deployed in Gironde, where blazes have burned through countryside between the Atlantic coast and Bordeaux. Officials said Bordeaux itself, a city of about 260,000 people, was not currently threatened, though one fire on Monday was about 15km from the city’s edge and smoke has affected air quality.

The Gironde prefect ordered new evacuations on Tuesday morning from coastal campsites near Lacanau, while people in the town were told to be ready to leave quickly if needed. The BBC reported that about 4,000 tourists were told to leave that area, adding to roughly 220,000 people evacuated around France in recent days. Officials said an estimated 240 homes and houses have been destroyed.

President Emmanuel Macron visited the affected area on Monday and described the wildfire situation as unprecedented for France and the toughest since the Second World War. Health Minister Stéphanie Rist said authorities were watching air pollution closely and advised people in affected zones to remain indoors. Witnesses and local residents described smoky streets, ash affecting businesses and tourists leaving the region.

The fires come during what the BBC described as France’s fourth heatwave of the summer, part of a wider pattern of extreme heat and wildfires affecting parts of Europe. The report also noted that a 23-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of starting a fire in the Var region, a separate area in south-eastern France.