Fires scorch Spain, France as flames reach beaches
PARIS — Firefighters battled wildfires raging out of control in Spain and France, including one with flames that reached two popular Atlantic beaches on Sunday, as Europe wilted under an unusually extreme heat wave.
So far, there have been no fire-related deaths in France or Spain, but authorities in Madrid have blamed soaring temperatures for hundreds of deaths. And two huge blazes, which have consumed pine forests for six days in southwestern France, have forced the evacuation of some 16,200 people.
In dramatic images posted online, a wall of black smoke can be seen rolling toward the Atlantic on a stretch of Bordeaux’s coast prized by surfers from around the world. Flames raced across trees abutting a broad, sandy beach, as planes flew low to suck up water from the ocean. Elsewhere, smoke blanketed the skyline above a mass of singed trees in images shared by French firefighters.
In Spain, firefighters supported by military brigades tried to stamp out over 30 fires consuming forests spread across the country. Spain’s National Defense Department said “the majority” of its firefighting aircraft have been deployed to reach the blazes, many of which are in rugged, hilly terrain that is difficult for ground crews to access.
Fire season has hit parts of Europe earlier than usual this year after a dry, hot spring the European Union has attributed to climate change. Some countries are also experiencing extended droughts, while many are sweltering in heat waves.
In Spain’s second heat wave of the summer, many areas have repeatedly seen peaks of 109 degrees. According to Spain’s Carlos III Institute, which records temperature-related fatalities daily, 360 deaths were attributed to high temperatures from July 10 to 15. That was compared with 27 temperature-related deaths the previous six days.
Almost all of Spain was under alert for high temperatures for another day Sunday, while there were heat wave warnings for about half of France, where scorching temperatures were expected to climb higher Monday.
The French government has stepped up efforts to protect people in nursing homes, the homeless and other vulnerable populations after a vicious heat wave and poor planning led to nearly 15,000 deaths in 2003, especially among the elderly.
Scorching temperatures have even reached northern Europe. An annual four-day walking event in the Dutch city of Nijmegen announced Sunday that it would cancel the first day, scheduled for Tuesday, when temperatures are expected to peak at around 102 degrees.
Britain’s weather agency has issued its first-ever “red warning” of extreme heat for Monday and Tuesday, when temperatures in southern England may reach 104 degrees for the first time.
College of Paramedics Chief Executive Tracy Nicholls warned Sunday that the “ferocious heat” in the U.K. could “ultimately, end in people’s deaths.”