A raging wildfire in southwest France forced the evacuation of 55 000 people overnight Sunday, bringing the total forced out of their homes to a staggering 220 000 in one region alone, as flames crept ever closer to the wine region city of Bordeaux. Neighboring Spain oversaw its own fire evacuations on the country’s east coast.
Shifting and gusting winds, as well as arid conditions, complicated massive efforts to limit the spread of the monster blaze burning out of control since midweek in France’s Gironde region, where Bordeaux is located. Authorities issued overnight evacuation orders for five more localities southwest of the historic city.
“The situation remains very unfavorable,” French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said after what he described as “another difficult night” for fire crews battling round-the-clock against the blaze that has burned an area four times the size of Paris.
“The fire became extremely virulent again and unpredictable, generating its own winds and advancing erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area,” Nunez posted on X.
“It became calmer by the end of the night,” the minister added.
Pope calls for prayers for victims of the ‘devastating wildfires’
At the end of his Sunday Angelus prayer, Pope Leo XIV referenced “the devastating wildfires” in France and Spain and said: “I express my solidarity and invite everyone to pray for those affected and for the work of the rescue workers.”
An estimated 42 000 hectares had burned in Gironde, the region’s prefecture said, much of it forests and scrubland made tinder-dry by successive heat waves. That is seven times the area of Manhattan island and four times the size of Paris.
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