Wildfires Force 270,000 Evacuations in France and Spain; Bordeaux Airport Closed, NASA Center Evacuated

Wildfires fuelled by high temperatures and unpredictable winds have ravaged parts of France and Spain since midweek, triggering Europe's largest evacuation operation in years. By Saturday, 25 July, more than 270,000 people had received evacuation orders or been forced to leave their homes, according to regional authorities.

France: peninsula emptied, airport shut

In southwestern France, the entire Cap Ferret peninsula on the Atlantic coast was evacuated village by village on Friday, 24 July, as a fast-moving forest fire approached. The blaze, which started near the village of Saumos on Wednesday, 22 July, had already consumed 32,000 hectares in the Gironde department alone, the prefecture said. Prefectural figures indicate over 167,000 people were evacuated in Gironde and about 30,000 in the neighbouring Landes department, where a separate fire near Biscarrosse had burned more than 2,500 hectares and forced the evacuation of 31,000 people. Bordeaux airport was closed after flames neared the city's suburbs, and the national railway operator asked travellers to postpone trips to Gironde and Landes until Monday.

The French government mobilised 1,000 soldiers to support firefighters, and an Airbus A400 military aircraft began dropping retardant on Saturday afternoon, adding to an existing fleet of Canadair and other European planes. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said on Saturday that 98,000 hectares of land had been devoured by flames since the start of the year.

It is a historic record.

Spain: state of emergency and a NASA centre at risk

The Spanish government declared a first-ever national state of emergency for a wildfire on Thursday, 23 July, after two large fires merged west of Madrid and a third threatened to join them. Regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso said that nearly 90,000 people were evacuated from the Madrid and Ávila regions.

They are the worst wildfires in the history of our region.

One of the most critical areas was the NASA Deep Space Communications Complex in Robledo de Chavela, about 50 to 60 kilometres west of Madrid. All 90 employees were evacuated on Friday, with the last staff leaving at the order of the Civil Guard in the early evening. Francisco Martín, the Spanish government's representative for the Madrid area, warned that "everything possible is being done to protect the antenna facility".

The installation is in a critical situation.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the priority was to save lives and protect communities, but he cautioned that the wind remained the biggest unknown. The health ministry issued an air quality alert after smoke pushed fine particle concentrations above World Health Organization recommended limits, and authorities advised people to wear high-protection masks if they needed to go outdoors.

The situation remains complicated. The forecasts we have say difficult hours await us, because, although temperatures have fallen, we do not know exactly how the gusts of wind will evolve, what their intensity will be.

Scenes from the ground

Romanian national Cristina Pițigoi, who lives near Madrid, described fleeing her village in ten minutes with her children, animals and identity papers. She said telephone alarms sounded around midday, followed by the arrival of firefighters and military personnel ordering everyone out, and that the village was already gridlocked as residents tried to escape.

We took the children, the animals and the documents. We didn't even have time to take clothes. There was ash everywhere, flames, smoke, chaos and alarms. It was horrifying, like in apocalyptic movies.

In Cap Ferret, 86-year-old local Jean Mazodier, who owns 150 hectares of forest, said he had never witnessed anything like it. "Everything is burned. It's like losing a child," he told reporters. British tourist Zac Morrison, 21, was staying with ten family members when two SMS alerts at 4:00 and 6:00 a.m. ordered them to leave immediately.

European support

France activated the EU civil protection mechanism on Friday, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed on Saturday that five planes and two helicopters were already aiding France, with four more planes due to arrive in Spain the same day. Portugal, Croatia, Slovakia, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Italy, Greece and the Netherlands all contributed aircraft or crews. Von der Leyen wrote on social media that "Europe stands with France and Spain against the devastating fires affecting them." Despite the crisis, the French minister for Europe and foreign affairs described the fires as a tragedy but urged tourists not to cancel their travel plans. Flights to Bordeaux and Madrid were operating normally.