Europe is battling a new wave of deadly wildfires as dramatic blazes sweep France and Spain, forcing panicking tourists to evacuate and killing one woman in her home.
It comes as a scorching heatwave continues to grip Europe with multiple countries recording their hottest temperatures yet as scientists warn of the mounting impact of climate change.
The fast-moving wildfire in southern France burned through some 13,000 hectares of land, a swathe as large as Paris, local officials said on Wednesday.
The blaze, believed to have been started by a discarded cigarette butt, has destroyed or damaged 25 homes in the Aude department, where 1,500 firefighters have been battling to extinguish it.
A woman died in her home and two people were injured, one of whom is now in critical condition with severe burns, according to the Aude prefecture.
