Raging wildfires in France prompt thousands of evacuations in 27 towns

(FRANCE) -- Amid widespread severe drought and sweltering temperatures, hundreds of firefighters are battling to contain multiple wildfires that have ignited in France, destroying homes and prompting thousands of evacuations, authorities said.

The biggest wildfire is raging in the Pyrénées, prompting organizers of the famed Tour de France road cycling race, which started on Saturday in Barcelona, Spain, to ban spectators from lining the route in the mountainous region.

"The exceptionally large wildfire currently raging in the Pyrénées-Orientales is requiring a massive mobilization of wildfire-fighting resources, internal security forces, and all government agencies," race organizers said in a statement. "The top priority remains the protection of people, property, and natural areas, as well as bringing the fire under control."

Race organizers said only cyclists participating in the Tour de France and their supporting teams are authorized to travel the race route, which officials are trying to keep clear for emergency traffic.

The blaze in southwestern France near the Spanish border has burned 4,936 hectares, or a little over 12,000 acres, French officials said in a social media post on Wednesday.

At least 12,000 people had been evacuated from 27 municipalities across the Pyrénées-Orientales, although some have been allowed to return home as flames have subsided in some areas, authorities said.

The Pyrénées town of Vinça, which has a population of about 2,200, remained evacuated on Wednesday along with 11 other villages in the region.

Video from the region showed homes and vehicles burned, and huge swaths of forestland blackened. Firefighting aircraft were also filmed swooping down on burning areas, dropping fire retardant.

Earlier this week, the European Union announced it was sending such aircraft to France from Sweden and Cyprus.

About 450 firefighters are battling the fire in the Pyrénées from the ground and the air, but are struggling to gain control of the wildfire amid triple-digit temperatures in the area and wind gusts of up to 30 mph, officials said. Another 170 gendarmes, or law enforcement officers, have also been dispatched to the region to support the firefighting effort.

Firefighters appeared to make progress in battling the fire, reporting Wednesday that the conflagration did not expand overnight.

Temperatures in parts of southwestern France are forecast to reach 105 degrees on Wednesday, with temperatures climbing to 95 degrees and above across three-quarters of the country.

Most of the country is under an "elevated" fire alert.

High to very high fire danger warnings remained in effect on Wednesday in at least 54 departments -- or local regional areas, including the Pyrénées-Orientales department, officials said.

Before the current wildfire outbreak, the highest number of departments under high or very high fire danger warnings at the same time was 29 in 2025, authorities noted.

Officials and experts have noted the fire season has begun weeks earlier than usual in France amid the unseasonal extreme heat wave that hit Europe in June. The heat wave has returned this week.

Scientists have said the record temperatures are being pushed up by climate change.

A 22-year-old firefighter was killed while battling a blaze in the Savoie region in the French Alps on Tuesday night, French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said in a social media post on Wednesday.

Fire danger warnings have also been issued in the Rhône Valley in southeast France, and across the central and western regions of the country.

The danger is expected to remain at a high level through this week across most of the country, given the lack of rain, scorching temperature and low humidity, authorities said.

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