Forest fires in France

A wildfire in France's Provence region continued spreading as overnight efforts successfully stopped the blazes from reaching the nearby towns of Correns and Montfort-sur-Argens.

Some 1,300 firefighters have been deployed to tackle the blaze, which has flared up again in the Gros Bessillon area, burning approximately 1,250 more hectares since 31 July. By the end of the week, authorities said a total of 4,500 hectares had been burnt.

Authorities say France's largest wildfire in 70 years has been brought under control near the southwestern city of Bordeaux.

The Gironde fire has burned 420 square kilometres of pine forest west of the city, an area four times the size of Paris.

Twenty French departments were under an orange heat warning, mostly in the east and southeast. Temperatures of 35 to 39 degree celsius were forecast around the Mediterranean, while eight departments faced a high forest-fire risk.

The Gironde fire has so far burned 42,000 hectares, making it one of the biggest devastations of land in France since the Second World War.

Around 200,000 people have been evacuated in south-west France in the Gironde and Landes regions. French President Emmanuel Macron has mobilised the military to assist the response.

Smoke from the fires in France is continuing to cause a “marked deterioration” in air quality across a swathe of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region and beyond, with health authorities warning about the danger.

More than 116,000 hectares of forest and vegetation have been burned since January, far exceeding the 70,000 hectares reported for the whole of 2025.

The fires that ⁠are hitting France have reached a level that has never been seen before
French authorities have issued evacuation orders for vast swaths of the area, which sits between Bordeaux and the Atlantic coast, over the last two days, as wildfires in areas around the city showed no ⁠signs of abating.

In France, the authorities have ordered the evacuation of roughly 197,000 people from the Gironde and Landes regions in the country’s southwest, where the fires have burned through more than 80,000 acres.

Around 44,000 people fled the upmarket Cap Ferret peninsula south of Bordeaux, with the only road threatened by flames.

On 23 July, over 20,000 people were evacuated to escape wildfires near Bordeaux. Evacuations were declared in the Gironde department, with authorities ordering a complete evacuation of around 40,000 people from the Cap Ferret peninsula. 

France requested the activation of the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM).

Successive heatwaves and increasing drought conditions are fueling wildfires across France. 

A fast-moving wildfire in southwestern France near Bordeaux started on July 22 and spread quickly overnight. News outlets reported that more than 10,000 people were evacuated when the fire moved quickly and burned about 2,400 hectares.

By 13 July, 23 wildfires were burning across the country, with 916 reported over the last 30 days. On 13 July, firefighters tackled a large blaze at Fontainebleau forest. 900 homes were evacuated. The fires were fuelled by strong winds. Evacuations of people were carried out. Water from the River Seine was used to help the efforts.

On 5 July, 70 residents of Bezouce were evacuated. 10,000 people were evacuated due to wildfires near the Spanish border. Over 11,000 acres were burned.

In France wildfires broke out in the southwestern Aude department, where temperatures topped 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), burning 400 hectares and forcing the evacuation of a campsite and an abbey, authorities said.

The fires were under control but not yet extinguished. Weather service Meteo France put a record 84 of the country's 101 departments on an orange heatwave alert.

A blistering early summer heatwave is making its way from the Iberian Peninsula northwards across Europe, forcing thousands of schools to close in France and prompting health warnings.

The Mediterranean Sea was warmer by up to 6 degrees Celsius (10.8 degrees Fahrenheit) than usual for the time of year.

The country had experienced its hottest June day on record on Monday.

The extreme heat also raised the risk of field fires as farmers in France, the European Union’s biggest grain producer, start harvesting this year’s crop.

Some farmers worked through the night to avoid harvesting during peak afternoon temperatures.

In the Indre region of central France, which has seen a spate of field fires since late June, authorities banned fieldwork between 2 pm (noon GMT) and 6 pm (16:00 GMT).

Scientists say greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels are a key cause of climate change, with deforestation and industrial practices being other contributing factors. Last year was the planet’s hottest on record.

The fire burned over 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) of land along the Mediterranean coast and spread across the border into northeastern Spain.

France’s government sounded alarm about the growing risk of forest fires because of climate change, as hundreds of firefighters in the country’s arid south wrestled with their biggest woodland-destroying blaze in 2023.

A massive wildfire broke out in the Gironde region of south-west France, near Bordeaux, and burned more than 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of pine forest. The fire was caused by a farmer burning agricultural waste and losing control of the flames. The fire reignited a month later amid record-breaking temperatures and drought and spread to the neighboring Landes department, threatening residential areas and tourist attractions, such as the Dune de Pilat, Europe’s highest sand dune. About 10,000 people had to be evacuated to save them from the inferno that produced towering black plumes of smoke. More than 1,000 firefighters supported by planes dropping water eventually brought the fire under control.

A wildfire erupted in the Gard department in the Occitanie region and burned about 500 hectares of land, mainly scrubland and forest. The fire was caused by a discarded cigarette butt that ignited dry vegetation and was propelled by hot and windy conditions. Over 600 firefighters were deployed to tackle the blaze, threatening several villages and campsites. About 700 people were evacuated.

A wildfire started in the Haute-Corse department on the island of Corsica and burned more than 2,000 hectares of land, mainly scrubland and forest. The fire was caused by a farmer burning agricultural waste and losing control of the flames. Over 300 firefighters were deployed to extinguish the fire, hampered by strong winds and rugged terrain.

Summer wildfires are again blazing across southern Europe, forcing the evacuation of 12,000 people on France’s Mediterranean coast and devouring swaths of forests as far afield as Corsica, Portugal, Italy and Albania.

Several wildfires raged across southern France and Corsica, burning more than 7,000 hectares of land and forcing more than 12,000 people to be evacuated. The fires were sparked by lightning, arson or negligence, spreading rapidly due to hot and dry weather and strong winds. More than 4,000 firefighters and soldiers were mobilized to fight the flames, threatening homes, campsites and infrastructure.

Another wildfire erupted near Marseille, in the Calanques National Park, and burned about 2,600 hectares of land, threatening residential areas and tourist sites. Over 1,000 firefighters were deployed to contain the fire, fueled by dry and windy conditions. About 20 people were injured and thousands were evacuated.

A wildfire broke out near Vitrolles, north of Marseille, and burned over 3,000 hectares of land, destroying dozens of homes and vehicles. More than 1,800 firefighters battled the blaze, fanned by strong winds and high temperatures. About 25 people were injured and hundreds were evacuated.