Gironde Wildfire Burns 42,000 Hectares and Evacuates 220,000 as 40C Heat Threatens Bordeaux
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jul 27
Gironde Wildfire Burns 42,000 Hectares and Evacuates 220,000 as 40C Heat Threatens Bordeaux
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 27
Summary
220,000 people have been evacuated around Bordeaux as the Gironde wildfire, after burning 42,000 hectares, remained uncontained early Monday despite no overnight advance.
40C temperatures forecast from Tuesday threaten to intensify a blaze Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez called extremely intense and unpredictable, with firefighters near Cestas using diggers to carve firebreaks.
116,000 hectares have burned in France since January, far above all of 2025, while Spain's fires have scorched 172,000 hectares and an Ávila blaze alone has reached 50,000 hectares.
Seven planes and four helicopters have been sent to France under the EU emergency mechanism, as officials warn the wildfire season started in April and could run until early November.
1.5 million FFP2 masks were dispatched as smoke worsened air quality across Nouvelle-Aquitaine, underscoring how heatwaves and climate change are stretching Europe's firefighting capacity.