French authorities on Tuesday ordered nearly 4,000 more people to evacuate from tourist destinations along the Atlantic coast, as a vast wildfire west of Bordeaux threatened to reignite with the return of high temperatures. This expansion marks a significant escalation in what is potentially France's largest peacetime evacuation.
Fire crews had managed to keep the blaze in the Gironde region under control through a calm night, suppressing flare-ups near coastal dunes. The burned area remained unchanged at 420 square kilometers (162 square miles). While authorities described the fire as stabilized, it was not yet contained and remained capable of spreading as temperatures climbed and humidity dropped.
“The situation remains complicated. That’s clear. We’re not out of the woods,” said Gironde prefect Sophie Brocas. Residents evacuated from three communities near Bordeaux, where no fires had reached, were permitted to return home but were instructed to keep their mobile phones on and emergency bags packed.
Across France and Spain, an estimated 330,000 people have been forced to flee their homes and vacation sites due to massive wildfires. Spain was bracing for its fourth heatwave of the summer, with several blazes still burning uncontrollably, including one that has become the largest in the country's recorded history.
Despite the ongoing challenges, Spanish authorities began lifting evacuation and stay-at-home orders for thousands of people after firefighters made progress overnight. In the Gironde region, the fire has consumed an area four times the size of Paris, leading to the evacuation of 220,000 people. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez stated it is “very likely” the largest civilian evacuation operation in the country outside of wartime.
The latest precautionary evacuation order in France encompassed campsites, holiday villages, tourist residences, and leisure parks surrounding the resort of Lacanau, according to regional authorities. Eric Brocardi, spokesperson for France’s national firefighters federation, described the situation as “fragile” on BFMTV, emphasizing the commitment to continue fighting the fire despite the anticipated rise in temperatures.
The Gironde blaze, at its most intense, generated a massive black thundercloud that produced lightning, strong winds, and new fires. This phenomenon, known as a pyrocumulonimbus cloud, was reportedly the first recorded in France. France's national weather service issued a yellow heat warning for Gironde, forecasting inland temperatures between 33 and 35 degrees Celsius (91 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit) starting midday Tuesday.
Nationwide, over 1,160 square kilometers (448 square miles) have burned across France in 2026, according to the Interior Ministry. Europe is warming at more than twice the global average, with Western Europe experiencing its hottest June on record, contributing to the spread and intensity of fires in France and Spain, according to the EU's Copernicus climate service.
In Le Porge, west of Bordeaux, approximately 150 homes were destroyed, the municipal government reported. Officials warned that smoldering vegetation, rising temperatures, and falling humidity could trigger new outbreaks along the fire's extensive perimeter. Military engineers and fire prevention crews resumed cutting firebreaks early Tuesday, with authorities stating that 103 kilometers (64 miles) of these breaks have been completed. At least 110 firefighters have sustained injuries, the prefecture confirmed.
In the Landes region, about 15,000 evacuees, roughly half of those displaced there, were allowed to return home after a separate wildfire stopped advancing. French President Emmanuel Macron stated on Monday evening that the fire in Landes was “fixed,” meaning its advance had ceased with no new reported outbreaks. Residents of Sanguinet, Parentis-en-Born, Biscarrosse’s aviation village, and a large campground were among those permitted to return, though several other neighborhoods remained inaccessible. Authorities cautioned that the Landes fire was not extinguished, and residual hot spots, wind, and drought could cause flare-ups, necessitating continued surveillance and damping-down operations for days or weeks.
In Spain, firefighters made progress on Tuesday, leading authorities to lift evacuation orders for at least 20,000 of the 79,000 people who fled over the weekend. Francisco Martín, the central government's representative in the Madrid region, announced that orders would be lifted in 10 towns, allowing about 20,000 evacuees to return home and ending stay-at-home orders for another 14,000 people. Residents of some villages in Ávila were also allowed to return, though specific numbers were not provided. An additional 6,000 people could return after a smaller fire near Toledo was brought under control, and several thousand more returned home in Castellón.
Hundreds of firefighters, supported by military emergency brigades and water-dropping aircraft, continued to battle several major wildfires. Smoke from these fires had reached Madrid in recent days, with emergency services reporting that residents in central and eastern districts could smell smoke and ash. Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska expressed cautious optimism on Tuesday due to continuous overnight work, but officials warned of a narrow window before extreme heat returned.
Spain's national weather service indicated the country was preparing for its fourth heatwave of the summer, with temperatures expected to surpass 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in some areas. The government has declared a national emergency over the fires. At least 13 people have died in wildfires in Spain this year, making 2026 one of the country's deadliest fire seasons in decades.
Estella Costales, an evacuated resident staying at a temporary shelter near Madrid, expressed disbelief: “I’ve been living in San Martín de Valdeiglesias for 20 years and I never thought I would see this. It’s unfortunate, but I never thought I would see such destruction.” The primary concern involved two large fires in wooded hills west of Madrid that had at times threatened to merge. A fire in hilly terrain in Ávila, west of Madrid, has become Spain's largest on record, scorching over 500 square kilometers (193 square miles).
Local weather services in Ávila also shared images of a pyrocumulonimbus cloud forming over the blaze, a phenomenon Spain has witnessed at least twice during recent wildfires. David Gonzalez, a gardener who delivered supplies to firefighters in Ávila, described the scene: “Look at how the valley is burned. Look at the houses, the people. We are feeling a lot of anger and helplessness. It’s something inhuman.” Ecology Minister Sara Aagesen reported that fires have burned 1,530 square kilometers (590 square miles) in Spain this year. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has called for a national pact to combat wildfires, attributing their worsening to climate change.
