Forest fires rage in France, Italy and Spain amid heatwave
Kyiv • UNN
Forest fires have swept through parts of Italy, France and Spain, killing three firefighters and causing mass evacuations. Temperatures above 40°C and strong winds are fueling the flames, and scientists link this to climate change.
Forest fires on Wednesday engulfed parts of Italy, France and Spain, killing three firefighters and forcing thousands to flee, as scorching temperatures and strong winds fueled the flames, UNN reports citing AFP.
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The fires came amid another severe heatwave in southern Europe, where temperatures in some areas exceeded 40°C.
Scientists agree that climate change caused by the burning of fossil fuels by humans makes extreme weather events such as fires and heatwaves more likely and severe.
In Sicily, about 6,000 firefighters, foresters and civil protection workers battled dozens of fires that raged for several days on the Mediterranean island.
Regional President Renato Schifani said about 50 fires were still ongoing, despite the deployment of water-dropping aircraft.
Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said a firefighter died after falling ill while battling the flames.
A spokesman for the Italian Civil Protection Agency told AFP that the situation in Sicily was "serious" and that the fires were "fueled by very high temperatures and very dry soil".
More than 160 fires were also recorded in the neighboring region of Calabria, which the head of the local civil protection said were deliberately set by "malicious individuals" who, among other things, tied rags soaked in flammable liquid to the tails of stray cats to spread the fire.
In France, two firefighters died on Tuesday while battling a fire that broke out near Bordeaux airport.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez met with the families of the firefighters on Wednesday, as unions warned that workers were facing "exhaustion" and a lack of resources.
Two raging fires led to the displacement of thousands of people in the southwest of the country, with one devastating about 2,000 hectares in the picturesque Arcachon Basin region near Bordeaux.
"We are dealing with a very dense plantation of closely packed pines," fire captain Wilfrid Schneider told AFP, describing a fire of "rare" intensity.
According to the prefecture, about 700 people left their homes in Le Porge, where more than 3,000 campers were also evacuated.
A fire that swept through wooded hills in another part of southern France, forcing hundreds to flee their homes and covering an area twice the size of London's Heathrow Airport, was contained earlier on Wednesday, officials said.
The fire broke out on Tuesday in the Var region and spread with unexpected speed, forcing about 400 people to evacuate and covering 2,550 hectares.
Nearly 1,000 firefighters and specialized water-bombing aircraft fought to contain the fire in the region located along France's Mediterranean coast between the cities of Marseille and Nice.
In total, 12,000 people were evacuated in southwestern France, and the prefect of Gironde, Sophie Brocas, called on hundreds more to leave the city.
In Spain, authorities on Wednesday ordered the evacuation of several areas around the city of Toledo, south of Madrid, after a large forest fire began threatening homes.
According to the Civil Guard, residents of the areas received emergency phone alerts about the fire, and several highways were closed.
Emergency services said that due to the "spread" of the fire, three villages were evacuated, and residents of a fourth village were ordered to stay home with doors and windows closed "until further notice".
Toledo is located 75 kilometers from the capital.
The new fire spread as hundreds of firefighters battled a large forest fire that devastated 32,000 hectares about 100 kilometers north of Madrid.
In 2025, more than 393,000 hectares have been scorched by fire in Spain, according to the European Forest Fire Information System, the highest toll in the country in recent times.