France orders mass evacuation as wildfire engulfs Cap Ferret peninsula

French authorities ordered the total evacuation of the Cap Ferret peninsula on Friday as a wildfire near Lège-Cap-Ferret spread through more than 31 square kilometres of forest and holiday terrain southwest of Bordeaux. The fire cut through one of France’s busiest summer corridors, pushing residents, tourists and resort workers out of Atlantic coast communities at the height of the season.

The response widened quickly as the blaze advanced across the Gironde coast. More than 10,000 people had already been evacuated near Lège-Cap-Ferret, and the total climbed to 12,000 after a further 7,000 were moved from the area. Later counts rose to more than 20,000 as evacuations expanded to towns and vacation resorts along the French Atlantic coast. Some people left by boat, an unusual escape route that underscored how the fire closed off normal road access on the peninsula.

Gironde regional authorities put around 700 firefighters on the line, with Sophie Brocas, the prefect of Gironde, overseeing the emergency response. About 800 firefighters, along with hundreds of gendarmes and soldiers, were deployed as crews tried to slow the fire’s spread through dry woodland near the popular coastal town.

The Cap Ferret evacuation came as Spain faced a parallel crisis. Spain’s government declared a national emergency as huge wildfires merged outside Madrid, with evacuations ordered around the capital and one person injured in the response. Earlier fires near Méntrida sent smoke toward Madrid as temperatures stayed high and fire conditions worsened.