France Stabilises Gironde Wildfire as Spain Battles Record Blazes Amid Intense Heatwave

French crews contained the massive Gironde blaze overnight with crews stopping flare-ups near Atlantic coast dunes during a temporary lull before rising heat and dropping humidity test their control.

The scorched zone held at 420 square kilometres following a quiet night, the Gironde prefecture stated. The wider regional crisis has forced nearly 330,000 residents and vacationers across France and Spain to flee their accommodation.

The fire started last week near Saumos, this inferno occasionally behaved as a self-feeding firestorm, forcing 220,000 residents to flee. Crews successfully controlled overnight flare-ups near Cap Ferret dunes and north of Le Porge, regional authorities stated.

"We are at a point of fragility," Eric Brocardi, spokesperson for France's national firefighters federation, told BFMTV on Tuesday. "We will continue attacking this fire despite the forecast rise in temperatures."

Gironde Battle Continues

The threat has not passed as civic officials warned that the fire is merely stabilised rather than fixed, meaning it could still spread. Although the perimeter did not expand for 24 hours, smouldering plants, rising heat and dropping humidity could quickly trigger new outbreaks.

Efforts resumed early Tuesday with soldiers and firefighters clearing 103 kilometres of tactical firebreaks to block the advancing flames, regional authorities informed. The prefecture stated that 93 firefighters suffered injuries, while the A63 motorway remained partially shut and trains south of Bordeaux were halted except towards Toulouse.

In neighbouring Landes, there was clearer progress on a separate wildfire, with thousands of evacuees allowed to return after the fire was fixed. That blaze had forced more than 30,000 residents and holidaymakers to leave.

"The fire is fixed, which is good news in the Landes," French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday evening.

Regional officials stated that dry conditions, wind and hot spots could trigger fresh flare-ups. Crews are expected to monitor and damp down the area for weeks.

Though,  rising temperatures on Tuesday threatened to undo the progress in both French fire zones. The country's meteorological agency issued a yellow heat alert for Gironde starting at noon, predicting inland heat of 33 to 35 degrees Celsius. Forecasters expected south-easterly gusts across the region alongside westerly coastal breezes.

The French Interior Ministry stated that flames consumed over 116,000 hectares across the country. The European Union's Copernicus climate service informed that western Europe experienced its warmest June ever, with severe drought and soaring temperatures accelerating the blazes in France and Spain.

Spain Faces Crisis

Hundreds of Spanish firefighters, supported by military emergency units and water-bombing planes, battled several massive blazes. Continuous overnight operations left him "reasonably positive", Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said, though he warned that returning heat could worsen the situation.

Spain's national weather service stated that the country entered its fourth summer heatwave, with temperatures projected to exceed 40 degrees Celsius in several areas. Spanish authorities evacuated approximately 79,000 people and ordered another 30,000 to stay indoors. For the first time, the government declared a national emergency over the wildfire crisis.

The main concern remained two large fires in wooded hills about an hour's drive west of Madrid, which have at times come close to merging into a single mega-blaze. Another fire in the eastern province of Castellon also led to mass evacuations.

A fire burning through hilly rural terrain in Avila, west of Madrid, has become Spain's largest on record, scorching more than 500 square kilometres, the government stated.

This year, blazes destroyed 1,530 square kilometres of territory, Ecology Minister Sara Aagesen said. The figure represents a sixfold increase over the area burned during the first half of 2025. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has urged for a national agreement to tackle climate-driven wildfires.