But other blazes have broken out in different parts of Europe as the forest fire season takes hold, including deadly ones in Greece, as well as in Britain, Portugal and Turkey.The unusual intensity of some of the fires underlines the increasing risk the continent faces as climate change parches vegetation and makes the emergencies more extreme, scientists say.'Resolutely optimistic'"We are resolutely optimistic... We can assume that the worst is behind us with this totally unprecedented fire," said Interior Minister Laurent Nunez on BFMTV.The prefect of Gironde, the French region worst hit by the fires, said Thursday had offered some hope.
French firefighters remain wary of flare-ups © Baz Ratner / POOL/AFP
"It is the first somewhat optimistic day, because we have the feeling that we are beginning to return to normal life and that things are starting to improve significantly," said Sophie Brocas.French firefighters have been battling a massive wildfire west of Bordeaux, which forced the evacuation of 220,000 people.Earlier Thursday, their service also said they were "reasonably optimistic" the blaze was no longer progressing.
George Clooney and his wife Amal Clooney had to flee with their twins from their estate in southern France © Adrian Dennis / AFP/File
