ESCALATING CRISIS:
Flames closed transportation links near Bordeaux, emptied coastal communities and opened a dangerous new front outside Valencia
Fire crews in France and Spain battling unchecked wildfires that have forced more than 300,000 people to flee were overwhelmed yesterday as the unpredictable blazes advanced. France’s southwestern city of Bordeaux, at the heart of a region of vineyards, was under threat, with a major highway and train lines cut. In Spain more villages in the fire zone raging west of Madrid were emptied during the night — and a new front opened near the coastal city of Valencia. France was faced with “a historic situation,” French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said late on Saturday.
Firefighters attempt to extinguish a wildfire near Saumos and Sainte-Helene, northwest of Bordeaux, France, on Friday.
The fire in the southwest and resulting evacuation operation rank among the biggest seen since World War II, authorities said, with more than 250,000 people ordered out of the danger zone. French Minister of the Interior Laurent Nunez yesterday wrote on X that “the situation remains very unfavorable” for fires across France.
