Authorities in France evacuated some suburbs of Bordeaux on Saturday as a massive wildfire shifted toward the city famous for its wines.
The prefect of the Gironde region that includes Bordeaux ordered the evacuation in the early hours of Saturday, covering parts of three of the city’s western suburbs, including its airport.
Evacuations were also underway in other towns and villages further west of the city’s immediate suburbs.
“As the fire continues to spread, and despite the significant resources deployed by firefighters, the situation requires the evacuation of residents from the affected areas to ensure their safety,” a statement from the prefecture said.
Massive forest fires have forced the evacuation of some 200,000 people in southwestern France and central Spain, with residents fleeing towns near Madrid and Bordeaux on Friday as flames raged out of control.
Firefighters and authorities in both European countries were caught off guard by the virulence of the fires, which were fueled by high temperatures and the long-term effects of climate change.
Firefighters in Spain admitted the fires were so fast and violent that they could not be tackled head on.
In France, some people even fled by boat when flames swept through touristic towns on the Atlantic coast.Some 141,000 fled homes in the Gironde and Landes departments in France, the French interior ministry said.
In central Spain, 60,000 were forced from their homes west of Madrid, according to the Spanish interior ministry.
Dozens of French firefighters have been injured, authorities said, but no deaths were reported in either country despite the scenes of panic as townsfolk fled by car and police went door to door to tell people to leave as large plumes of smoke darkened the skies.
