Large wildfires in France and Spain intensified overnight, prompting further evacuations for people living near Bordeaux in western France and around Spain’s capital, Madrid.
A new blaze near the coastal city of Valencia in Spain caused one death and forced residents to escape.
Wildfires expanded toward the outskirts of the historic French city of Bordeaux, located in the core of the nation’s wine-producing region, on Sunday, as France and Spain confronted blazes that have already compelled the displacement of hundreds of thousands of residents.
Authorities reported that approximately 220,000 people have been evacuated in France, while in Spain over 75,000 have been forced to leave their homes and an additional 30,000 have been instructed to remain indoors.
Approximately 2,500 firefighters, 1,500 military personnel, and 1,200 police officers have been sent to the region.
Blazes near Bordeaux — a city of 268,000 inhabitants — have also forced the closure of roads, including a highway along the Atlantic coast, and disrupted train services near the major wine-producing hub.
In total, the fires have burned about 42,000 hectares (103,000 acres) — an area four times larger than Paris, or seven times the size of Manhattan — devastating more land than at any point since 1949, when 50,000 hectares were destroyed by fires.
In a separate incident, firefighters are confronting an ongoing blaze in the southern Var region, where 3,000 people have been evacuated.
Whereas in Spain, fires continues to consume areas west and north of the capital Madrid, where tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.
A new fire raging outside the seaside town of Valencia has claimed the life of one individual before firefighters rescue team arrived.
On Sunday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that "difficult hours lie ahead," while visiting fire-affected areas west of the capital, but noted that there had been "positive" progress in bringing the blaze under control overnight.
