Tens of thousands evacuated from French tourist spot as wildfires spread
The fire has raged in the region for several days with officials now ordering the evacuation of the entire Cap Ferret peninsula.
French authorities have ordered the evacuation of the entirety of the Cap Ferret peninsula on the south-west coast, with hundreds of people escaping the area by boat.
Tens of thousands of people are being evacuated from the tourism destination west of Bordeaux, as firefighters continue to battle what the local prefect has described as an "XXL fire" in the Gironde region.
The fires, which began on Tuesday, have burned for days, with officials saying 10,000 hectares (almost 25,000 acres) had been consumed by the flames.
Meanwhile, the government in Spain has declared a national emergency as wildfires burn out of control in several areas close to the capital Madrid.
Hundreds have been evacuated from the peninsula by boat while others have been told to leave via road
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez spoke of a "dramatic situation" and urged people to take great care. Three fires were burning west of Madrid, at Villa del Prado and San Martín de Valdeiglesias.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 40,000 people had either been or were in the process of being evacuated from the Cap Ferret peninsula, which has the Atlantic on one side and the Bay of Arcachon on the other.
Local prefect Sophie Brocas said 53 homes had been lost as well as a campsite, but that 2,000 houses had been saved.
A local councillor said 2,000 evacuees from the peninsula had already arrived by boat in the port of Arcachon on the south side of the bay.
Fire and rescue chief Marc Vermeulen said the wildfire had spread rapidly at the end of Thursday and into the early hours of Friday. Authorities then took the decision on Friday morning to begin the evacuation of the town of Arès, which lies south-east of Lège-Cap Ferret on the Bay of Arcachon.
Further down the Atlantic coast, around the town of Biscarrosse in France's Landes region, another major fire that began on Thursday afternoon has prompted the evacuations of more than 23,000 people.
About 18,000 people in Biscarrosse and 5,000 in Parentis-en-Born had to leave their homes, campsites, a nursing home and a summer camp.
Landes prefect Gilles Clavreul said the fire around Biscarrosse was not going to be out by the end of Friday, with winds of up to 50km/h (31mph) and temperatures of 36-37C.
He added that 105 homes and other buildings had so far been identified as either partially or completely destroyed by the flames.
No further casualties have been reported overnight in south-west France, although two firefighters died on Tuesday while tackling a blaze near Bordeaux airport.
French President Emmanuel Macron said o
📌 Source
This summary is auto-compiled from XML. Visit the original article for the full text.
Read original article →