A fresh heatwave is threatening to fuel Europe’s worst wildfires in living memory, with firefighters in France and Spain locked in a race to bring huge blazes under control before temperatures climb once again.
Forecasters have warned scorching conditions will return this week, with France expected to see highs of up to 40C from Tuesday and Spain forecast to reach 42C from Wednesday, raising fears that the fires could spread even further.
The blazes have already torn through vast areas of woodland, destroyed hundreds of homes and forced the evacuation of around 280,000 people across the two countries.
In southwestern France, the wildfire near Bordeaux has burned through 103,000 acres in just six days, destroyed 240 houses and driven 220,000 people from their homes.
Nearly 4,000 more people have now been ordered to leave campsites, tourist residences, holiday villages and leisure parks around Lacanau on the Atlantic coast as authorities continue efforts to prevent further destruction.
Fire commander Eric Pitault insisted crews were “on the offensive” as he stood inside a 50-metre-wide, 25-kilometre-long firebreak created with the help of civilian volunteers on the Cap Ferret peninsula.
Officials said flare-ups overnight in the northern part of the peninsula had been brought under control and confirmed the total area destroyed had not increased.
Spain is facing a similarly desperate battle. Around 60,000 residents have been forced to flee fires raging west of Madrid after flames swept across 190,000 acres – an area almost the size of New York City.
Outside Aldea del Fresno, evacuated residents formed queues in their cars hoping to return to their homes and pets, but the Guardia Civil continued to block access because of dangerous smoke levels.
Among them was 55-year-old domestic helper Galia Borisova, who was waiting to reach her animals in nearby Picadas, reports the Daily Mail.
She said: “They say there’s so much smoke that you can’t breathe, even with a mask. And I believe it, because you could see it from here.”
The extreme conditions are drying out vegetation that had grown rapidly during wetter weather earlier in the year and leaving forests dangerously vulnerable to fire.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described the blazes as “the most painful expression of a climate emergency”, while French President Emmanuel Macron warned: “The coming weeks will be tough and we have to hold out.”
Concerns are also growing beyond France and Spain. EU crisis management commissioner Hadja Lahbib warned firefighting resources could come under even greater pressure as extreme conditions spread across the continent.
She said: “Extreme conditions are looming for Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, in addition to France, the Iberian Peninsula… where the situation is expected to worsen, including in Portugal starting today.”
Spain’s meteorological agency AEMET said a new heatwave will begin on Wednesday and continue until at least the end of the week, with temperatures expected to reach 42C in the northeast and 39C in central Spain.
MeteoFrance has also forecast temperatures of up to 40C from Tuesday, accompanied by dry winds that could increase the risk of further fire outbreaks.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said the coming hours would be “absolutely decisive” in the effort to bring the fires west of Madrid under control.
Portugal also remains on high alert after flames swept through the northern district of Braga on Monday, while Italy continues to battle fires in popular tourist destinations including Sicily, Puglia and Tuscany.
British holidaymakers caught up in the crisis have been urged to follow evacuation instructions, with European relations minister Hamish Falcone stressing the importance of following official travel advice.
French authorities have gone even further, urging tourists with planned trips to the worst-hit areas to postpone their holidays.
“I urge tourists not to come to this region, at least until the situation is under control,” said Sophie Brocas, the prefect of Gironde.
The advice has already prompted some Britons to cancel their holidays. However, travellers have been warned they may struggle to recover their costs because the Foreign Office has not advised against travel to the affected regions, meaning many insurance policies may not cover cancellations.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
