Crisis Meeting Called as Over 250,000 Evacuate Their Homes Due to Wildfires

French President Emmanuel Macron has called a crisis meeting over the massive wildfires in France and Spain, saying his government will “be there for as long as needed.”

The fires are at their worst in the areas near Bordeaux, Madrid and Ávila, with hundreds of homes destroyed and hundreds of thousands having to evacuate, with many in temporary evacuation shelters set up in spaces like the Bordeaux-Lac Exhibition Centre. Just outside Bordeaux, the fire has consumed an area of land four times the size of Paris, making it France’s biggest wildfire since 1945. 

Currently, one civilian near Valencia and two firefighters near Bordeaux have died, with dozens more sustaining serious injuries. 

It's likely that the recent heatwaves and lack of rain are part of what first caused fires to start at the beginning of July. France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nunẽz said the blazes are “moving erratically”, as strong winds are making them extremely difficult to control. 

Written by Jorja Flitcroft