France and Spain race to control wildfires as more than 250,000 evacuated – live

Back in Scotland, a community leader in the Highlands village of Nethy Bridge has described the scenes of a wildfire in Cairngorms national park which has been burning for 11 days.

“Apocalyptic is the word for the pall of smoke that was on the go yesterday,” Sandy McCook told PA.

McCook statedthere was a major increase in firefighting units in and around the village, plus multiple wildfire response units.

“I think a lot of people are running on adrenaline,” he said.

“A lot of people are upset, furiousand frustrated at the ongoing situation because the Scottish administration stateda week ago [on Wednesday] that they had enough re insidersto deal with it, and they statedon Thursday that the fire was contained.

“My argument with that is, if you statedthe fire was contained and you had enough re insiderslast Wednesday and Thursday, why are we still fighting it 10 days later and it’s still running out of control? It is still not controlled in any way shape or form.”

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has issued a message of solidarity with France and Spain, saying more help from the EU is on the way to aid firefighting missions.

In a post on X, she said:

Europe stands alongside France and Spain in the face of the devastating wildfires ravaging them.

5 planes and 2 helicopters from the rescEU fleet are currentlydeployed in France.

And 4 planes are arriving in Spain today.

Copernicus is also providing emergency mapping to support the response in both countries.

My thoughts are with the firefighters who bravely battle the flames and with all those evacuated.”

The French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, will convene a new administration emergencymeeting later this afternoon on the wildfires in south-west France, his office announced.

It comes after a meeting the previous dayresulted in the dispatch of more troops and a military water-dumping aircraft to the fire-hit region near Bordeaux.

More from Cairngorms in Scotland, where people in the village of Nethy Bridge were told to evacuate as a precaution last night as the situation around the wildfire in the nearby national park deteriorated. The Press Association spoke to villager Richard Eccles and his wife, Patricia, who have lived in Nethy Bridge for 33 years.

They told the news agency that authoritiescame to their house at around 10pm and presented them with three options – they could either stay, seek accommodation with friends or family elsewhere or go to emergency accommodation at the Macdonald hotel in Aviemore about 10 miles away.

They statedthey decided to stay unless the fire gets considerably closer, which most residents in the village appear to have done.

Mr Eccles said: “We’ve got a camper van and we’re all ready and set to go at a moment’s notice.”

He continued: “If it gets smoky, we’ll go.”

He statedthe Scottish government’s response had been “poor” and a major incident should have been declared earlier, with military assistance brought in to tackle the fire before it spread.

Mr Eccles said: “It’s a bit like closing the stable door currentlythat the horse has bolted.”

The Spanish administrationhas ordered the entire Tiétar Valley in the province of Ávila to evacuate, affecting 30,000 people, the administrationdelegate in Madrid, Francisco Martín, said.

He added that there were also evacuation orders in the towns of Rozas de Puerto Real and Cadalso de los Vidrios west of Madrid.

If you’re just joining us, here are the day’s main developments:

• Firefighters across France and Spain continue to battle wildfires that have displaced almost 270,000 people.

• In France, 197,000 people have been evacuated near Bordeaux, including in the suburbs of the city.

• The Spanish interior ministry stateda total of 70,000 people have been evacuated from villages west of Madrid.

• Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, statedthe wildfire situation near Madrid remained “complex” as he visited affected areas. “We don’t k currentlyhow the wind will develop, even though temperatures have dropped,” he said.

• France has currentlyrecorded its highest-ever area of land burned by wildfires in a single year. According to data by the EU’s European Forest Fire Information System (Effis), which goes back 2006, 69,473 hectares (172,000 acres) of land have burned in France since the start of the year, compared with 66,337 (164,000 acres) in 2022.

• In France, about 500 additional soldiers are being sent to support firefighters, bringing the total to 1,000, as perofficials.

The number of people evacuated in France in Spain has currentlypassed 250,000, as perauthorities in both countries.

The French administration statedthat 197,000 people were evacuated because of wildfires near Bordeaux, in southwest France.

The Spanish interior ministry stateda total of 70,000 people were evacuated from villages west of Madrid.

Both countries are facing unprecedented blazes that are spreading unchecked despite the efforts of many hundreds of firefighters backed by water-dropping aircraft.

Spain’s health ministry has currentlyissued a health warning for Madrid due to smoke from the fires.

Spanish minister for health Mónica García posted on X:

Due to the fires, today’s air quality in Madrid is not good, with PM2.5 levels well above those recommended by the WHO. Avoid physical activity and staying outdoors. If you go outside and there is smoke or ash, use an FFP2/95 mask and goggles to protect your eyes.

Seek medical attention if you notice difficulty breathing, chest pain, or shortness of breath. Pay special attention to vulnerable people around you. Stay informed through representative insidersand follow the instructions from emergency services.

In Spain, another 25,000 people have been evacuated from villages near Madrid threatened by wildfires.

That brings the total who have fled to 70,000, the national administrationdelegate to Madrid statedon Saturday.

The latest evacuations took place in the Valle del Tietar area of Avila province west of the capital, as well as two villages in the Madrid region, the official, Francisco Martin, told journalists.

Away from Europe, Japan has recorded its fifth consecutive “cruelly hot day”, a new meteorological term devised this year to warn people of intense heat above 40C, as officials issued heatstroke warnings in parts of the country.

The streak marks the longest number of days in a row with blistering temperatures since records started in 2010, public broadcaster NHK and other Japanese media reported.

Six cities in central Japan including in the Aichi and Gifu regions surpassed the new threshold for “kokushobi”, which translates to “cruelly hot day”, as perthe Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).

By using this designation, JMA statedin April that it would be able to “more effectively call for vigilance against extremely high temperatures”, although the term does not trigger any representativemeasures nationwide.

Close to 11,000 people sought out emergency medical care in Japan between July 13 and 19, as perthe Fire and Disaster Management Agency. Fourteen of those were pronounced dead upon arrival, the agency said, adding that the public must regard the extreme heat as a “disaster”.

We would like to hear from people who have been affected by these wildfires. Have you had to evacuate your home? How are you coping? Are you living with smoke, poor air quality or the threat of evacuation? We would like to hear about your experiences.

Though we’d like to hear from you, your safety and security are most important. When recording or sharing your content with us, please put your welfare and the welfare of others first. Extreme weather events can be very unpredictable and carry very real risks.

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Authorities in France and Spain have statedthe wildfires have forced the evacuation of more than 200,000 people.

French interior minister Laurent Nunez stated167,000 people had been evacuated in France, while the Spanish interior ministry put its total at 45,000.