Firefighters are continuing to battle huge forest fires across France and Spain on Monday, as authorities warned that another heatwave could bring temperatures of up to 40C to the already scorched wine-growing region around Bordeaux.
Issued on: 27/07/2026 - 08:36
2 min Reading time
More than 325,000 people have fled their homes in the two countries, with some of the worst fires in their recent history burning across south-west France and central and eastern Spain. French President Emmanuel Macron is due to hold a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday morning. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez prepared to visit fire-hit areas in Valencia, where a new blaze has forced 15,000 people to evacuate. During a visit to Avila province, west of Madrid, on Sunday, Sanchez warned that “difficult hours lie ahead”. Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said the fires were continuing to advance, although more slowly. Civil protection chief Virginia Barcones described the vast blaze around Avila as a “monster”, with a perimeter of 280 kilometres covering 77,000 hectares. In a post on social media platform X, Pope Leo XIV called for prayers for those affected and rescuers "in the face of the devastating fires that have struck several localities in France and Spain in recent days".
