The fire has burned 42,000 hectares of forest and remains out of control despite efforts to contain it.
Firefighters tackle a blaze as wildfires rage near Le Las, outside Bordeaux, France, Monday, Jul 27, 2026. (Photo: AP/Emma Da Silva)
28 Jul 2026 01:51AM
MARCHEPRIME, France: Farmers and firefighters on Monday (Jul 27) battled to contain a huge wildfire that has forced 220,000 people to flee and destroyed dozens of homes in southwest France before a new heatwave hits this week.French President Emmanuel Macron was to head to the stricken area near its wine capital of Bordeaux to show support.France has been battered by three heatwaves since May as part of increasingly common extreme weather episodes linked to climate change, causing thousands of excess deaths and fuelling wildfires.The wildfire has since Wednesday ravaged 42,000 hectares (103,000 acres) of forest - an area larger than the US city of Detroit - west of Bordeaux. Tourists and residents have had to flee at the height of the summer holidays, while around 240 homes have been destroyed."The fire is not contained, which means it's still burning," Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told reporters in Paris."We really need to remain extremely cautious."
