A summary of today's developments
-
Firefighters across France and Spain continue to battle wildfires that have displaced almost 270,000 people.
-
A man has died in a wildfire near the Spanish city of Valencia, the country’s interior ministry said. The victim was found in a car in a ravine in the town of Manises, west of the city.
-
In France, 197,000 people have been evacuated near Bordeaux, including in the suburbs of the city. The French armed forces significantly expanded its military response to the major wildfires in the south-west, deploying 1,500 soldiers to support firefighters, assist with evacuations and provide medical care, transport, accommodation, and logistical support. The armed forces are also supplying specialist equipment, including bulldozers, helicopters, drones, and A400M military aircraft equipped for aerial firefighting, to help contain the fires and support the wider emergency response.
-
The French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, convened new government crisis meeting later on the wildfires in south-west France, his office announced.
-
The Spanish interior ministry said a total of 70,000 people have been evacuated from villages west of Madrid. Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said the wildfire situation near Madrid remained “complex” as he visited affected areas. “We don’t know how the wind will develop, even though temperatures have dropped,” he said.
-
The first minister of Scotland has asked for military aid from the UK government as more than 500 firefighters continue to tackle a firewhich has raged in the Cairngorms national park for the past 11 days and forced the evacuation of homes in the remote region.
More than 400 emergency personnel are working to contain the wildfire to the west of the Spanish capital, Madrid’s emergency agency ASEM112 said, in addition to 50 ground and 12 aerial units such as fire engines and helicopters.
Rodika, 60, from the small town of Fresnedillas de La Oliva near Madrid, told Reuters she was evacuated around 30 minutes away.
“I saw clouds of smoke rising into the sky. That’s when I realized something was happening.
“I think we all panicked. Then we received the message telling us to get ready, take whatever valuables we could, whatever was most important. I took my cat, and we left.”
The evacuation was similar for Julio, 41, in the nearby town of Navalgamella.
“Neighbours were shouting, the police were shouting, everything was happening at once. We packed the essentials: two or three changes of clothes, my medication in my case, some cash, and we left,” he said.
Man dies in wildfire near Valencia
A man has died in a wildfire near the Spanish city of Valencia, the country’s interior ministry said.
The victim was found in a car in a ravine in the town of Manises, west of the city.
Updated
Sunday’s stage of the Tour de France has been shortened to 89km from the original 133km to allow security personnel to be redeployed to tackle wildfires near Bordeaux, organisers and police said.
Spain’s interior ministry said residents in the town of San Martin de Valdeiglesias and the village of Valdemaqueda, near Madrid, should stay indoors.
More than 28,000 people are already under lockdown in the autonomous region of Madrid and the Avila municipality, the ministry added.
Unrestrained wildfires in Spain and France have forced more than 250,000 people to flee, authorities from both countries have said, as they struggle to contain the blazes.
About 70,000 people were evacuated from central Spain, while 197,000 people fled in France, including tens of thousands from the wine region city of Bordeaux.
Spain declared a national emergency over the fires, the first time the country has ever done so over a wildfire.
Hundreds of firefighters have worked to contain the blazes, which have been fuelled by persistent heatwaves and the climate crisis, but were still unable to stop their advance. In Spain, high winds were exacerbating the fires, and two of the three merged on Friday.
France’s interior minister, Laurent Nuñez, said a huge military cargo plane, the Airbus A400M Atlas, was being deployed to join 18 other aircraft in the “long and very difficult” battle against wildfires in the Gironde region of south-western France.
French military deploys 1,500 soldiers to support firefighters
The French armed forces have significantly expanded its military response to the major wildfires in the south-west, deploying 1,500 soldiers to support firefighters, assist with evacuations and provide medical care, transport, accommodation, and logistical support.
The armed forces are also supplying specialist equipment, including bulldozers, helicopters, drones, and A400M military aircraft equipped for aerial firefighting, to help contain the fires and support the wider emergency response.
In a post on X, Catherine Vautrin, the minister of the armed forces who attended an emergency meeting at the army headquarters, said: “Our forces are engaged on the ground in support of the internal security forces and civil security forces as part of the state’s response to a sudden, major, and unprecedented crisis, to protect people, property, and businesses.”
Here’s a video showing the extent of the devastation wrought on Spain and France as firefighters continue to battle the wildfires:
The Spanish civil guard has warned misinformation and images not related to the wildfires in the Madrid and Ávila regions were circulating online, as it advised people to follow official channels and media outlets for information.
It said the following areas were being evacuated:
Madrid: Las Rozas de Puerto Real, Cadalso de los Vidrios, Cenicientos and the Entrepinos estate.
Ávila: La Adrada, Piedralaves, Sotillo de la Adrada, Casillas and Santa María del Tiétar, la Iglesuela and Arenas de San Pedro.
The French newspaper Le Monde has noted that more than 32,000 hectares (79,000 acres) of land have burned in Gironde, an area equivalent to three times the size of Paris.
Some pictures on the newswires from Lacanau, in the Gironde region of south-west France, where firefighters and volunteers are trying to contain the wildfire:
Updated
Villager describes 'apocalyptic' scenes in Cairngorms as wildfire continues to burn
Back in Scotland, a community leader in the Highlands village of Nethy Bridge has described the scenes of a wildfire in Cairngorms national park which has been burning for 11 days.
“Apocalyptic is the word for the pall of smoke that was on the go yesterday,” Sandy McCook told PA.
McCook said there was a major increase in firefighting units in and around the village, plus multiple wildfire response units.
“I think a lot of people are running on adrenaline,” he said.
“A lot of people are upset, angry and frustrated at the ongoing situation because the Scottish government said a week ago [on Wednesday] that they had enough resources to deal with it, and they said on Thursday that the fire was contained.
“My argument with that is, if you said the fire was contained and you had enough resources last Wednesday and Thursday, why are we still fighting it 10 days later and it’s still running out of control? It is still not controlled in any way shape or form.”
Updated
The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has issued a message of solidarity with France and Spain, saying more help from the EU is on the way to aid firefighting missions.
In a post on X, she said:
Europe stands alongside France and Spain in the face of the devastating wildfires ravaging them.
5 planes and 2 helicopters from the rescEU fleet are now deployed in France.
And 4 planes are arriving in Spain today.
Copernicus is also providing emergency mapping to support the response in both countries.
My thoughts are with the firefighters who bravely battle the flames and with all those evacuated.”
French prime minister convenes new emergency meeting
The French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, will convene a new government crisis meeting later this afternoon on the wildfires in south-west France, his office announced.
It comes after a meeting yesterday resulted in the dispatch of more troops and a military water-dumping aircraft to the fire-hit region near Bordeaux.
More from Cairngorms in Scotland, where people in the village of Nethy Bridge were told to evacuate as a precaution last night as the situation around the wildfire in the nearby national park deteriorated. The Press Association spoke to villager Richard Eccles and his wife, Patricia, who have lived in Nethy Bridge for 33 years.
They told the news agency that police came to their house at around 10pm and presented them with three options – they could either stay, seek accommodation with friends or family elsewhere or go to emergency accommodation at the Macdonald hotel in Aviemore about 10 miles away.
They said they decided to stay unless the fire gets considerably closer, which most residents in the village appear to have done.
Mr Eccles said: “We’ve got a camper van and we’re all ready and set to go at a moment’s notice.”
He continued: “If it gets smoky, we’ll go.”
He said the Scottish government’s response had been “poor” and a major incident should have been declared earlier, with military assistance brought in to tackle the fire before it spread.
Mr Eccles said: “It’s a bit like closing the stable door now that the horse has bolted.”
Updated
The Spanish government has ordered the entire Tiétar Valley in the province of Ávila to evacuate, affecting 30,000 people, the government delegate in Madrid, Francisco Martín, said.
He added that there were also evacuation orders in the towns of Rozas de Puerto Real and Cadalso de los Vidrios west of Madrid.
The day so far
If you’re just joining us, here are the day’s main developments:
-
Firefighters across France and Spain continue to battle wildfires that have displaced almost 270,000 people.
-
In France, 197,000 people have been evacuated near Bordeaux, including in the suburbs of the city.
-
The Spanish interior ministry said a total of 70,000 people have been evacuated from villages west of Madrid.
-
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said the wildfire situation near Madrid remained “complex” as he visited affected areas. “We don’t know how the wind will develop, even though temperatures have dropped,” he said.
-
France has now recorded its highest-ever area of land burned by wildfires in a single year. According to data by the EU’s European Forest Fire Information System (Effis), which goes back 2006, 69,473 hectares (172,000 acres) of land have burned in France since the start of the year, compared with 66,337 (164,000 acres) in 2022.
-
In France, about 500 additional soldiers are being sent to support firefighters, bringing the total to 1,000, according to officials.
Updated
Total number evacuated in France and Spain is now 267,000
The number of people evacuated in France in Spain has now passed 250,000, according to authorities in both countries.
The French government said that 197,000 people were evacuated because of wildfires near Bordeaux, in southwest France.
The Spanish interior ministry said a total of 70,000 people were evacuated from villages west of Madrid.
Both countries are facing unprecedented blazes that are spreading unchecked despite the efforts of many hundreds of firefighters backed by water-dropping aircraft.
Air quality warning for Madrid
Spain’s health ministry has now issued a health warning for Madrid due to smoke from the fires.
Spanish minister for health Mónica García posted on X:
Due to the fires, today’s air quality in Madrid is not good, with PM2.5 levels well above those recommended by the WHO. Avoid physical activity and staying outdoors. If you go outside and there is smoke or ash, use an FFP2/95 mask and goggles to protect your eyes.
Seek medical attention if you notice difficulty breathing, chest pain, or shortness of breath. Pay special attention to vulnerable people around you. Stay informed through official sources and follow the instructions from emergency services.
Further 25,000 evacuated from fire zone in Spain, total now more than 70,000
In Spain, another 25,000 people have been evacuated from villages near Madrid threatened by wildfires.
That brings the total who have fled to 70,000, the national government delegate to Madrid said on Saturday.
The latest evacuations took place in the Valle del Tietar area of Avila province west of the capital, as well as two villages in the Madrid region, the official, Francisco Martin, told journalists.
Away from Europe, Japan has recorded its fifth consecutive “cruelly hot day”, a new meteorological term devised this year to warn people of intense heat above 40C, as officials issued heatstroke warnings in parts of the country.
The streak marks the longest number of days in a row with blistering temperatures since records started in 2010, public broadcaster NHK and other Japanese media reported.
Six cities in central Japan including in the Aichi and Gifu regions surpassed the new threshold for “kokushobi”, which translates to “cruelly hot day”, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).
By using this designation, JMA said in April that it would be able to “more effectively call for vigilance against extremely high temperatures”, although the term does not trigger any official measures nationwide.
Close to 11,000 people sought out emergency medical care in Japan between July 13 and 19, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. Fourteen of those were pronounced dead upon arrival, the agency said, adding that the public must regard the extreme heat as a “disaster”.
We would like to hear from people who have been affected by these wildfires. Have you had to evacuate your home? How are you coping? Are you living with smoke, poor air quality or the threat of evacuation? We would like to hear about your experiences.
Though we’d like to hear from you, your safety and security are most important. When recording or sharing your content with us, please put your welfare and the welfare of others first. Extreme weather events can be very unpredictable and carry very real risks.
You can contact us via the form on the link below:
Wildfires in France and Spain force more than 200,000 people to evacuate
Authorities in France and Spain have said the wildfires have forced the evacuation of more than 200,000 people.
French interior minister Laurent Nunez said 167,000 people had been evacuated in France, while the Spanish interior ministry put its total at 45,000.
2026 becomes France’s worst wildfire year on record as blazes spread
France has recorded its highest-ever area of land burned by wildfires in a single year, with 2026 surpassing the previous record set in 2022 as fires continue to rage in the south-western Gironde and Landes regions.
According to data by the EU’s European Forest Fire Information System (Effis), which goes back 2006, 69,473 hectares (172,000 acres) of land have burned in France since the start of the year, compared with 66,337 (164,000 acres) in 2022.
The Spanish state meteorological office, Aemet, said the fire risk will be lower today than on previous days across the west and central parts of Spain.
But it warned that it will remain “at very high levels” across other parts of the country and even reach extreme levels in the north-east and east.
According to the Spanish environment ministry, there have been 32 large wildfires in Spain so far this year, compared with seven over the same period last year (1 January to 25 July).
From 1 January to 25 July this year, 131,113 hectares of land in Spain have been burned in wildfires. The figure for the same period last year was 24,133 hectares.
Pedro Sánchez made a stark revelation that 130,000 hectares (321,000 acres) of land have already burned since January – exceeding the annual average of 100,000 hectares over the last decade.
As we reported earlier, the wildfires raging west of Madrid have prompted Sánchez to reiterate his call for a “national pact against the climate emergency”, urging a coordinated response to the growing threat posed by climate change.
The Spanish prime minister’s remarks, made during a visit to the affected areas this morning, came after he announced a 10-point plan to tackle the climate crisis last year, as my colleague Sam Jones reports.
He proposed a series of initiatives including a state civil protection agency to coordinate crisis responses, a network of climate refuges across the country and a rethink of forest management and land use. Only by acting now, he said, could the country hope to avert similar disasters or reduce their impacts.
You can read Sam’s report here:
Updated
The French government has mobilised soldiers to help tackle the wildfire ravaging south-west France and distributed 1.5m face masks to protect people from smoke exposure.
Authorities in the Gironde region that includes Bordeaux ordered the evacuation for parts of three of the city’s western suburbs, including its airport, according to the Associated Press. Other towns and villages west of the city were also ordered to evacuate, adding to the tally of 141,000 people who have already been forced to flee in the face of two major fires in the south-western Gironde and Landes regions.
In a post on X, the French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, said more than 500 military personnel have already been deployed and more will be sent today to help firefighting teams.
He said 1.5m masks were being delivered to Gironde “to protect personnel on the ground and members of the public exposed to harmful smoke”.
In further comments, Sánchez said:
Our priority, our thinking, our aim is for your lives, to save your lives and protect inhabited areas.
We are going to have some complex hours ahead because although the temperatures have gone down, we do not know exactly how the wind will develop, how strong it will be.”
Updated
Sánchez warns Madrid wildfire situation remains 'complex' as he calls for 'state pact against climate emergency'
The Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said the wildfire situation near Madrid remained “complex” as he visited affected areas.
“We don’t know how the wind will develop, even though temperatures have dropped,” he said, according to El País.
The Spanish newspaper reported the prime minister reiterated his call for a “national pact against the climate emergency”, as he asked the public to “accept and understand” that climate change is causing increasingly severe and intense forest fires that are even “exceeding scientific predictions”.
A French foreign minister has urged people not to abandon travel plans despite severe wildfires affecting parts of the country’s south-west.
Éléonore Caroit, the minister for francophone, international partnerships and French nationals abroad, said France was experiencing an “exceptionally intense” fire season, but stressed that many regions remained unaffected and visitors should keep their plans while staying informed about local conditions.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Caroit described the fires as a “tragedy”, with nearly 50,000 hectares (123,600 acres) of land burned this year, surpassing the impact of previous severe fire seasons.
She added: “You have entire areas that are fine, you’re seeing similar phenomena in Spain and other countries. I’m in Paris and nothing is happening, and most other regions are OK, so do please come to France and do not cancel your travel plans.
“But wherever you are, please do be advised as to what might be happening.”
Swinney: Cairngorms wildfire 'a very serious situation'
Scotland’s first minister John Swinney said the Cairngorms national park wildfire is still a “very serious situation”, as the Scottish government reconvened an emergency meeting this morning to review the ongoing response.
The village of Nethy Bridge was evacuated as a precaution last night after Police Scotland declared a major incident following changes in wind conditions that intensified the pace of spread of the wildfire.
“This continues to be a very serious situation. Residents, businesses and people staying in the affected areas will understandably be very worried. My thoughts are with them and I thank them for their understanding,” Swinney said in a statement.
“With the fire changing to be in the direction of Nethy Bridge yesterday afternoon, a precautionary evacuation was put in place and a fire break was successfully established overnight to protect the village. Police officers visited all properties in Nethy Bridge and officers are in the village today to support residents.”
He added that changing winds had shifted the wildfire’s path, reducing the immediate threat to Nethy Bridge while firefighting teams focused on containing the blaze and creating new firebreaks.
“This demonstrates how these situations can change very quickly and dramatically,” he said.
Sánchez visits areas affected by wildfires near Madrid
The Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has visited areas affected by the wildfires near Madrid, which has burned nearly 25,000 hectares (62,000 acres) of land.
Updated
French prime minister requests deployment of military aircraft for firefighting mission
The French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, has requested the armed forces to deploy an Airbus A400M military transport aircraft earlier than originally planned to help tackle the major wildfires in Gironde, according to Le Monde.
The French newspaper reported the aircraft’s use was not originally expected until the end of the month due to the technical preparations and tests required beforehand.
Updated
As Europe endures another summer of extreme heat, rivers across France are shrinking or drying up entirely, threatening wildlife and leaving volunteers racing to rescue fish stranded in dwindling stretches of water. My colleague Kim Willsher reports from France on how relentless heat and prolonged drought are transforming the country’s rivers and the ecosystems that depend on them.
While the fires raging across forests in France are a dramatic reminder of three successive heatwaves in as many months, the state of the country’s rivers provides another, no less worrying insight into the impact of extreme heat supercharged by the climate crisis.
The Loire, France’s longest river, is at a historical low, with the flow of some branches, including through the city of Orléans, reduced to a trickle between sandbanks. Two weeks ago, 16% of French rivers were reported to have dried up. A quarter of small streams were stagnant or had disappeared altogether, according to the national low water observatory. There has been little rain since.
Read more:
My colleague Helena Horton is in south-west France, in an area east of the Gironde region where wildfires are continuing to burn. She has reported the following:
The fire department of the Dordogne region has been in touch with the local mayors and hotel operators to reassure them after the smoke from wildfires over 100 miles away blew over and settled in the mountains and valleys.
The air is thick with smoke, but the fire department had said there is no cause for concern and that this is the smoke from the fires raging near Bordeaux. It seems much of France has woken up under a blanket of smoke this morning.
Scottish government holds emergency meeting as wildfire prompts evacuation of Cairngorms homes
In the UK, a major incident has been declared after a wildfire in the Cairngorms national park in Scotland forced the evacuation of hundreds of people.
Nethy Bridge, a village of about 600 people, was evacuated last night as a precaution and all access roads to the village have been closed, police said.
The Scottish government convened its emergency response committee – the Scottish government resilience room, known as SGORR – yesterday to the evacuation of Nethy Bridge, with the meeting chaired by first minister John Swinney.
“[Scottish Fire and Rescue Service] resources are focused on creating a fire break and additional police resources are being deployed to assist with the evacuation, including identifying vulnerable residents who may need extra support,” Swinney said in a statement.
The Scotsman newspaper reported the wildfire, which broke out in the Glenmore area of the Cairngorms national park more than a week ago, has prompted calls for military support after strong winds caused the blaze to spread despite a large-scale response involving more than 500 firefighters and other emergency personnel.
Supt Judy Hill of Police Scotland said: “The weather conditions experienced within the Cairngorms over the last 24 hours have added further complexities to this situation. With evidence suggesting the fire is spreading towards Nethy Bridge, the decision has been taken to declare a major incident and evacuate residents as a precaution.”
Official warns windy conditions could intensify Madrid wildfires
Authorities in Spain said weather conditions in the early hours of this morning offer “a real opportunity” for firefighters to control the blaze, but stronger winds later today could hamper efforts and intensify the fire.
Francisco Martín, the government delegate in Madrid, said the drop in temperature, easing winds and increase in humidity meant firefighters could tackle the wildfires near the Spanish capital “with some guarantee of success”.
But he warned “erratic gusts” forecast later today could make the situation “difficult”.
The Madrid regional government’s emergency management chief, Carlos Novillo, told reporters yesterday that the fire was “at its peak and … currently beyond the capacity of firefighters to contain”, AFP reported.
Updated
Here are some of the latest images from France and Spain:
Evacuations begin for some of Bordeaux's suburbs
French authorities evacuated thousands of people from suburbs near Bordeaux on Saturday as wildfires in areas around the city showed no signs of abating, the Reuters news agency reports.
Sophie Brocas, who heads the local administration of La Nouvelle-Aquitaine et de la Gironde, which covers the Bordeaux region, said on X that the areas of Le Haillan, Eysines and Merignac were being cleared out.
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that more than 141,000 people had so far been evacuated from the Gironde and Landes regions which lie close to Bordeaux, and where the wildfires first broke out this week.
“The fires which are hitting our country have reached a level that has never been seen before,” Lecornu wrote on X on Saturday. The French army has also been drafted in to help.
Updated
Spain's Sanchez due to visit affected areas today
Spain’s government declared a national emergency on Thursday evening after wildfires threatened areas near the capital and in the neighbouring province of Ávila, leading to the evacuation or confinement of more than 63,000 people.
A national emergency, which allows central government to assume overall control of powers and responsibilities that are usually the domain of Spain’s self-governing regions, has only been declared once before, during the countrywide blackout of April 2025.
The regional government of Madrid requested assistance, describing the situation as one of “extreme gravity”. It said at least four active fires could advance “beyond current extinguishing capacity”. The fires remained uncontained on Friday.
Spanish authorities said on Friday afternoon there was “very little time left” before the blaze in Madrid, already made up of two merged fires, combined with the Ávila fire.
Madrid’s regional environment minister, Carlos Novillo, said the fire had reached “a critical moment” and was “beyond our extinguishing capability”. He added: “The priority at the moment is protecting people, helping those who have been evacuated, and making the most of windows of opportunity.”
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, chaired an emergency response meeting at the Moncloa palace on Friday morning as the state meteorological office warned that the danger of more fires remained very high.
He said the government had deployed “all available resources”, adding: “It will be by your side during the emergency and the recovery.”
The prime minister also thanked “all the emergency services that are fighting day and night”. Sánchez is due to visit the affected area on Saturday morning.
Macron seeks EU help with 32 fires across France
On Friday, France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, said he had activated the EU’s civil protection mechanism as the country, which has endured three almost back-to-back heatwaves since May, battled numerous wildfires.
“We will soon be able to count on reinforcements from two Croatian aircraft, two Portuguese planes, as well as two heavy helicopters from the Czech Republic and Slovakia,” Macron said.
Meanwhile, France’s interior minister, Laurent Nuñez, said that 32 wildfires were burning, with 50,000 hectares scorched already so far this year – nearly four times the total by the same date last year.
Updated
Race to control wildfires in France and Spain
Hello and welcome back to our rolling coverage of the wildfires spreading through parts of Spain and France.
More than 200,000 people have been evacuated or locked down across both countries as firefighters battle to control the spread of the blazes.
Authorities in south-west France ordered the Cap Ferret peninsula on the Atlantic coast to be evacuated “village by village” in the face of an “intense, highly unpredictable” wildfire that has burned through more than 19,000 hectares (47,000 acres) of forest.
Spain’s government declared its first national emergency for a wildfire as two large blazes merged into one outside Madrid and a third was on the verge of joining them, amid searing heat and tinder-dry conditions across much of southern Europe.
Both countries sought EU help. “This is the worst wildfire in our region’s history,” said Madrid’s regional leader, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, describing “an unprecedented situation: a perfect storm of extremely high temperatures and relentless winds”.
Scientists say climate breakdown is triggering more frequent and more extreme weather events, evaporating soils and waterways, fuelling wildfires and leading to thousands of excess deaths. Europe is heating at about twice the global average rate.
You can read the full report from my colleagues in France and Spain, Jon Henley and Sam Jones, here:
We’ll bring you the latest updates throughout the days…
