French wildfire forces 250,000 people to evacuate as flames rage near Bordeaux
European wildfires force more than 250K people to evacuate across Spain, France
Wildfires have raged in Spain and France, forcing more than 250,000 people to evacuate. One fire threatens France’s famous Bordeaux wine region, and Spain has declared a state of emergency across the country. France has sent in the military, and the Tour de France has been cut short as firefighters battle huge flames.
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More than half a million people have been forced from their homes in southwestern France as wildfires barrel toward the famous wine capital of Bordeaux, with officials warning that the fast-moving storm is building its own winds and misbehaving.
French authorities ordered another 55,000 people to evacuate Sunday night in communities south of Bordeaux, bringing the total number of people evacuated to 250,000. Storms, dry conditions and repeated heat waves have fueled the fire, which has been burning out of control since midweek.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said firefighters faced a “difficult” night and warned Sunday that “the situation remains very serious.”
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Firefighters spray water on a burning forest near Lacanau, southwest France, Saturday, July 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)
“The fire became extremely strong again and unexpectedly, it created its own atmosphere and advanced in an inexplicable manner in the area of the city of Bordeaux,” Nunez wrote in X, adding that the flame “became calm at the end of the night.”
The fire has now burned an estimated 42,000 hectares, or about 162 square kilometers – about four times the size of Paris – in the Gironde region. The Mayor of Bordeaux, Thomas Cazenave, said that the flames started at a distance of 9 kilometers from the city, which led the officials to temporarily close the main road in and out of the region.
More than 2,500 firefighters, supported by 18 aircraft and helicopters, are working to slow the blaze. France also sent 1,500 soldiers to help clear vegetation and build fire extinguishers, while several European countries sent aircraft and firefighting personnel to help.
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Nunez said 450 volunteers also stepped in to help.
“We came to lend a hand because if it was our region, we would like others to do the same,” 65-year-old farmer Pascal Roudier told Reuters. “And given the scale of the crisis, we think our efforts are very welcome.”
Firefighters battle a wildfire near Marcheprime, outside, in Bordeaux, France, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)
The Bordeaux fire is one of the largest wildfires burning across France. A fire in neighboring Landes has forced another 36,000 people to evacuate, while another 3,000 have left their homes in France’s southern Var region on the Mediterranean coast.
Neighboring Spain is facing its own bushfire emergency.
A firefighter holds a hose while battling a wildfire in San Martin de Valdeiglesias, west of Madrid, Spain, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Authorities there have evacuated around 116,000 people in recent days as fires rage in the Valencia region and west of Madrid. A wildfire in the Valencia region killed one man on Saturday, marking the first fatality from a wildfire in Spain in the latest wave of fires.
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Earlier this month, 13 people were killed in southern Spain during the worst wildfire in recent memory.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
