Europe wildfires latest: Bordeaux considering ‘total evacuation of city if necessary’ after blaze spreads further – UK Times
Bordeaux City Council is considering a total evacuation of the city, a spokesperson told Sky News on Sunday. The Council is “currently studying scenarios for all possible ways the fire could evolve”, they. . .
Bordeaux City Council is considering a total evacuation of the city, a spokesperson told Sky News on Sunday. The Council is “currently studying scenarios for all possible ways the fire could evolve”, they said, which includes a total evacuation of the city, if needed. Surrounding areas have been evacuated as the fire advanced amid high winds. French interior minister said that the blaze was “extremely virulent and unpredictable again, generating its own wind and spreading erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area” on Saturday night but had calmed “somewhat” overnight. The situation “remains highly unfavourable”, he added. Bordeaux is the sixth largest in France when including both the city proper and surrounding metropolitan area and is home to over 1. 2 million people. One man died in a wildfire in Manises, near the Spanish city of Valencia, the country’s interior ministry said. He was found in a car in a ravine hundreds of kilometres away from the severe wildfires near Madrid. Around 300,000 people have been displaced including some 70,000 people evacuated in central Spain. “The fires which are hitting our country have reached a level that has never been seen before,” French prime minister Sebastien Lecornu wrote on X on Saturday. Watch: Military plane tackles ‘apocalyptic’ wildfires across France YT draftsMilitary plane tackles ‘apocalyptic’ wildfires across France YT draftsMaira Butt26 July 2026 10:50French Gendarmerie rescues family from village near new fire outbreakFrance’s gendarmerie, a branch of the French armed forces, have shared footage of an evacuation of a family from a village near a new fire outbreak. “All state services are fully mobilised to protect the population and property, day and night,” it wrote in a post on X alongside the footage. Maira Butt26 July 2026 10:30Bordeaux fire was ‘generating its own wind and spreading erratically’, says French minister in new updateFrance’s interior minister Laurent Nunez has provided an update following another “tough night” of wildfires. “The situation remains highly unfavourable,” he wrote in a post on X on Sunday. “At the start of the night, in Gironde, the fire became extremely virulent and unpredictable again, generating its own wind and spreading erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area. “By the end of the night, it had calmed down somewhat. . He said that the burned area now stands at 42,300 hectares of land and that an additional 50,000 people were evacuated. A firefighter stands on the edge of a burning area in Blagon, west of Bordeaux, on July 26, 2026 as a wildfire has been ravaging the forest north of the Arcachon Basin (Gironde) since July 22. (AFP/Getty)Maira Butt26 July 2026 10:10Maira Butt26 July 2026 10:00In pictures: Fires continue to rage west of BordeauxA firefighter pulls a hose on the edge of a burning area in Blagon, west of Bordeaux, on July 26, 2026 as a wildfire has been ravaging the forest north of the Arcachon Basin (Gironde) since July 22. (AFP/Getty)Firefighters work on the edge of a burning area in Blagon, west of Bordeaux, on July 26, 2026 as a wildfire has been ravaging the forest north of the Arcachon Basin (Gironde) since July 22(AFP/Getty)A firefighter from Marseille pulls a hose amid smoke in Ares on July 26, 2026 as a wildfire has been ravaging the forest north of the Arcachon Basin (Gironde) since July 22. The fire that has engulfed the area around the Arcachon Basin and is now threatening the outskirts of the Bordeaux metropolitan area has destroyed 42,000 hectares of “burned area,” the Gironde prefecture announced; the prefecture has evacuated a total of 220,000 people since July 22. (AFP/Getty)Maira Butt26 July 2026 09:48Mapped: The areas in France and Spain affected by raging wildfiresOver 280,000 people have been forced to evacuate their homes as wildfires continue to rage across Spain and France. Government officials from both countries have commented on the historic nature of the blaze, with Madrid’s regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso describing it “the worst fire in the history of the region”. “The fires which are hitting our country have reached a level that has never been seen before,” French prime minister Sebastien Lecornu wrote on X on Saturday. Lecornu promised that over 1. 5 million face masks would be provided as even areas unaffected by the worst of the blaze saw air quality deteriorate and smoke spread. Below we look at the areas affected and evacuated as a result of the wildfires. Maira Butt26 July 2026 09:30Bordeaux City Council is exploring options to deal with the various ways the wildfires nearby could evolve, including a total evacuation of the city, a spokesperson told Sky News. The Council is “currently studying scenarios for all possible ways the fire could evolve”, they said, which includes a total evacuation of the city, if needed. Surrounding areas have been evacuated as the fire advanced amid high winds. The city is the sixth largest in France. Maira Butt26 July 2026 09:00Watch: Aerial view as authorities attempt to put out France wildfiresAerial view as authorities attempt to put out France wildfires