Speaking during a visit Monday to the wildfire coordination center in Lège-Cap-Ferret, Macron praised emergency crews for slowing the advance of a massive blaze that has burned since last week, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate and scorching an area roughly four times the size of Paris.

“We’re facing a completely unprecedented fire,” Macron said, describing the disaster as France’s most severe wildfire emergency since World War II. He urged firefighters to “stay strong” and assured affected communities that “we will win this battle together.”

Firefighters Strengthen Containment Ahead of Heat Wave

Authorities said firefighters succeeded in halting the fire’s advance on Monday after days of rapid spread that brought flames to within about 15 kilometers (9 miles) of the outskirts of Bordeaux. Despite that progress, officials stressed that the wildfire remains active, with large areas continuing to smolder.

France’s national weather service forecast temperatures of 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) or higher across southwestern France beginning Tuesday, raising concerns that hot, dry and windy conditions could quickly reignite parts of the fire.

Thousands of firefighters, supported by water-dropping aircraft and helicopters, continued reinforcing containment lines and extinguishing hotspots before temperatures rise again.

Macron cautioned that recovery would be a lengthy process.

“The weeks ahead will be hard. We must hold firm,” he said.

Evacuations Disrupt Communities and Tourism

The two major wildfires burning in southwestern France have forced about 250,000 people to evacuate, with Macron acknowledging the hardship facing displaced residents.

He said many evacuees had experienced significant trauma, with some losing their homes and possessions.

Although no new evacuation orders were announced Monday, authorities maintained restrictions across parts of the Gironde region surrounding Bordeaux as France approaches its peak summer tourism season.

Officials suspended holiday camps for children and people with disabilities, while government ministers urged travelers to postpone nonessential visits to the area, known for its Atlantic coastline, vineyards and extensive forests.

Firefighters continued constructing defensive firebreaks using heavy machinery, while local farmers supplied water to crews working along the fire perimeter.

Regional fire officials told Macron the wildfire had behaved unlike previous fires, at times generating its own weather systems and fire-induced thunderstorms that sparked additional flare-ups.

Southern Europe Faces Expanding Wildfire Emergency

France is among several southern European countries confronting an exceptionally severe wildfire season.

Authorities said around a dozen countries have deployed aircraft, helicopters, firefighters and other emergency resources to assist operations in France and Spain.

In Spain, wildfires near Madrid and in the Valencia region have forced approximately 79,000 people to evacuate, while another 30,000 residents have been instructed to remain indoors because of the fire threat.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the increasingly destructive wildfire seasons reflect the growing effects of climate change rather than isolated natural disasters.

“What we are experiencing is not a series of isolated incidents. It is the consequence of a climate emergency that is making wildfires even more violent, heat waves more frequent,” Sánchez said.

Spanish authorities said a wildfire in Ávila, west of Madrid, has become the country’s largest on record after burning about 500 square kilometers (193 square miles), roughly five times the area of Barcelona.

Ecological Transition Minister Sara Aagesen said wildfires have burned approximately 1,530 square kilometers (590 square miles) across Spain this year, about six times the area affected during the same period in 2025. Spain’s national weather agency has forecast temperatures exceeding 40 C (104 F) during another heat wave expected to begin Tuesday.

Italy Also Battles New Wildfire Threats

Italy continued responding to wildfire activity after a wind-driven blaze erupted Sunday near Peschici in the southern Puglia region.

Authorities evacuated about 300 tourists from nearby beaches and campgrounds, while the Italian Coast Guard transported evacuees by sea to the town of Vieste, where temporary shelters were established.

Three Canadair water-bombing aircraft and ground firefighting crews remained engaged Monday as officials worked to prevent the blaze from expanding in an area that experienced devastating wildfires in 2007.

The simultaneous emergencies across France, Spain and Italy highlight the mounting pressure on European emergency services as prolonged heat, drought and strong winds continue to elevate wildfire risks across the region.

This report is based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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The main fire in the Gironde region has reached within about 15 kilometers (9 miles) of Bordeaux, according to Mayor Thomas Cazenave, who said authorities have no plans to evacuate the city’s population of about 850,000. Tens of thousands of residents in surrounding communities have already been ordered to leave their homes.

France and Spain have experienced some of Europe’s most destructive wildfires in recent days, with more than 330,000 people evacuated across both countries. The simultaneous emergencies have renewed concerns over the growing impact of prolonged drought and extreme heat across southern Europe.

Macron said the French government would help affected communities recover “for as long as is needed,” while Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez warned that conditions in Gironde remained “very unfavourable” as shifting winds continued to push the fire toward Bordeaux.

New Heatwave Threatens to Intensify Fire Conditions

Weather forecasts indicate temperatures could reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) across parts of France beginning Tuesday, increasing the risk of further fire spread and placing additional pressure on emergency services.

France’s National Firefighters Federation (FNSPF) said the Gironde wildfire generated a rare pyrocumulonimbus cloud—a fire-induced thunderstorm capable of producing powerful winds and lightning that can rapidly change a wildfire’s behavior.

FNSPF spokesperson Eric Brocardi said firefighters were unable to directly attack the shifting fire front because of its unpredictable movement.

“We don’t know how the blaze will spread, the fire front is constantly shifting. We cannot fight it directly,” Brocardi said, describing the operation as “a David-versus-Goliath scenario.”

He said bringing the fire under control could require several days of heavy rainfall or allowing the blaze to burn into terrain where it could naturally lose intensity, such as coastal areas.

Gironde Fire Becomes One of France’s Largest in Decades

The Gironde wildfire has burned about 42,000 hectares (104,000 acres), making it one of France’s largest forest fires since World War II.

Authorities said nearly 98,000 hectares (242,000 acres) have burned across France since the beginning of the year, while more than 220,000 people have been evacuated from southwestern regions.

Firefighters from across the country have been deployed to reinforce operations around Bordeaux as officials work to protect communities and critical infrastructure.

Spain Battles Expanding Wildfire Emergency

Spain is also confronting a worsening wildfire crisis.

Firefighters continued battling a new blaze near the eastern city of Valencia on Sunday after approximately 15,000 residents were evacuated.

Pilar Bernabé, the central government’s representative in Valencia, described the fire as “very intense” and warned that deteriorating weather conditions could worsen the situation.

Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said firefighters were making gradual progress, but Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez cautioned that “difficult hours lie ahead” during a visit to the fire zone in Ávila province west of Madrid.

Sánchez also called for “a major public pact on the climate emergency.”

King Felipe VI, speaking during a visit to an emergency shelter in Villamanta southwest of Madrid, said the fires had caused “incalculable” damage to Spain’s natural heritage.

Authorities estimate that approximately 77,000 hectares (190,000 acres) have burned across Spain this year. Ecological Transition Minister Sara Aagesen said the wildfire in Ávila is the country’s largest in recent history.

More than 90,000 people have been evacuated from areas surrounding Madrid and Ávila as shifting winds pushed the fires toward additional communities.

Among those displaced was Olga Congacha, who returned briefly to her home in Robledo de Chavela to collect medicine and found the village deserted and covered in ash.

Southern Europe Faces Increasing Wildfire Challenges

Authorities have not announced a coordinated European response, but the concurrent wildfire emergencies in France and Spain underscore the growing challenges posed by increasingly severe wildfire seasons across southern Europe.

Emergency officials continue monitoring weather conditions closely as high temperatures, strong winds and prolonged drought threaten to fuel additional fire activity in the coming days.

This report is based on reporting by BBC News.

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The fires have displaced communities across southern Europe, including about 70,000 evacuees in central Spain. Spanish authorities also confirmed the first reported fatality linked to the fires after a man died in Manises, in the Valencia region.

The widespread evacuations and coordinated international response highlight the growing impact of increasingly severe wildfire seasons across the Mediterranean.

France Deploys Military Resources to Protect Gironde

France expanded its firefighting response on Saturday by deploying an Airbus A400M military transport aircraft modified for aerial firefighting, dropping large quantities of flame retardant over drought-stricken forests in the southwest.

Authorities remain concerned that shifting winds could push the Gironde wildfire closer to Bordeaux, one of France’s largest cities and the center of a globally significant wine-producing region.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said firefighters were strengthening containment lines by digging trenches, deploying flame retardants and carrying out additional defensive operations. He warned the firefighting effort would likely be “long and very difficult.”

The Gironde prefecture said the blaze intensified into what officials described as a “firestorm” on Friday after igniting earlier in the week. Although firefighters have slowed its advance, authorities cautioned that the wildfire remains highly dangerous.

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said the fire became so intense that it generated its own weather conditions, including powerful local winds, underscoring its exceptional strength.

The French government deployed hundreds of soldiers to reinforce firefighting operations and distributed 1.5 million protective face masks to residents affected by heavy smoke.

Officials said approximately 140 homes have been destroyed in the Gironde region.

Wildfires Disrupt Tour de France and Public Services

The wildfire emergency has also affected one of France’s biggest sporting events.

Tour de France organizers and Paris police announced that Sunday’s final stage would begin directly in Paris instead of Thoiry, shortening the route from 133 kilometers (82 miles) to 89 kilometers (55 miles).

Officials said part of the race’s security personnel would instead assist emergency operations in wildfire-affected regions.

In Bordeaux, authorities converted an exhibition center into a temporary shelter capable of housing thousands of evacuees.

The city’s airport remained open, although bus and tram services were suspended as emergency operations continued.

Residents in threatened communities received evacuation orders through emergency mobile phone alerts.

Spain Continues Large-Scale Firefighting Operations

Spain has deployed approximately 2,600 firefighters, police officers and emergency personnel, supported by 19 water-dropping aircraft and helicopters, to battle two major wildfires west of Madrid.

Firefighters said the blazes have spread so rapidly and intensely that direct attacks on the flames were often impossible.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said approximately 130,000 hectares of forest have already burned in Spain this year, exceeding the country’s average annual total of about 100,000 hectares over the past decade.

After visiting an emergency command center west of Madrid, Sánchez said improving weather conditions had created “a window of opportunity” for firefighters to strengthen containment efforts.

Madrid’s regional government later reported that lower temperatures and lighter winds had reduced the fires’ intensity.

Residents described rapidly changing conditions that left communities with little time to evacuate.

Javier Organista, a resident of El Tiemblo, said neighbors worked together to protect their community as flames surrounded the town and threatened to cut off escape routes.

European Nations Coordinate Emergency Assistance

The wildfires have prompted one of the largest coordinated firefighting responses in recent years.

Authorities said Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Slovakia, Germany and Switzerland have either deployed or pledged aircraft and helicopters to assist operations in France and Spain.

Officials in both countries said prolonged drought and repeated heat waves left forests and scrubland exceptionally dry, allowing fires to spread rapidly once ignited.

Emergency crews continue working to contain multiple active fire fronts while authorities monitor weather conditions that could significantly influence the direction and intensity of the blazes in the coming days.

This report is based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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