Spain, France Battle Wildfires as Heatwave Intensifies Across Southern Europe
Firefighters battled major wildfires in Spain and France on Wednesday as intense heat, drought and strong winds continued to fuel dangerous conditions across southern Europe.
Spain’s largest wildfire of the year has burned an estimated 32,000 hectares in the Guadalajara region, forcing evacuations in 34 municipalities and confinement orders in 14 others.
The fire began to stabilise on Tuesday, allowing residents of five villages to return home, although restrictions remained in place elsewhere.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who visited the affected region on Wednesday, said Spain had already recorded 22 major wildfires this year, with more than 100,000 hectares of land destroyed nationwide.
He said the figure was equal to the annual average recorded by Spain over the past decade and called for greater efforts to prevent fires and raise public awareness about the dangers posed by the climate crisis.
Spain’s weather agency, AEMET, warned that the risk of wildfires remained “very high or extreme” across much of mainland Spain and the Balearic Islands.
Dry thunderstorms, Saharan dust and rising temperatures were expected to worsen conditions in the coming days.
Temperatures in parts of the Mediterranean region could reach between 42 and 44 degrees Celsius, with another surge of intense heat expected after a brief cooldown later in the week.
In France, firefighters continued battling a wildfire in the southeastern Var region that has burned around 2,500 hectares, damaged dozens of homes and forced about 400 people to flee.
More than 1,100 firefighters worked through the night, while helicopters resumed dropping water on the still-active blaze on Wednesday morning.
Although lower temperatures and lighter winds helped the firefighting operation, officials said the fire had not yet been contained.
Authorities banned barbecues in the affected area and urged municipalities to cancel traditional summer fireworks, warning that human activity is responsible for nine out of 10 wildfires in France.
The country is also mourning two firefighters who died on Tuesday after their truck was engulfed by flames in the southwestern Gironde region. Another wildfire was reported in the Hautes-Alpes.
The extreme weather has extended beyond wildfires. Greece is expecting temperatures above 41 degrees Celsius and has banned outdoor work during the hottest part of the day, while Cyprus has also restricted outdoor work during afternoon hours.
Meanwhile, violent storms battered parts of the Western Balkans. In North Macedonia, 11 people were taken to hospital after a storm brought down trees, damaged roofs and caused widespread power outages. Three of those injured were reported to be in serious condition.
Authorities in Kosovo also warned of further storms, with the possibility of lightning strikes, flooding, power cuts and damage to homes and electricity infrastructure.
Scientists say Europe is warming faster than any other continent, with human-driven climate change intensifying heatwaves, droughts, wildfires and sudden destructive storms.
