PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron has directed the armed forces to provide full support to the country’s Civil Security services as devastating wildfires continue to spread across southwestern France, prompting large-scale evacuations and an intensified national emergency response.
Following Macron’s instructions, an interministerial crisis meeting was convened under the leadership of Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu. Senior officials from the ministries of the interior, armed forces, health, transport, and environment coordinated efforts to combat the growing disaster.
The Gironde department remains the worst-affected area, where the fires have scorched more than 19,000 hectares of land. Regional authorities described the blaze as exceptionally intense, warning that powerful winds and extreme heat could carry embers up to one kilometre, creating new fire outbreaks far from the main front.
Emergency officials reported that around 100 buildings have been destroyed in Gironde, where approximately 1,000 firefighters are working around the clock to contain the flames. As the wildfire advanced west of Bordeaux, authorities ordered additional evacuations in nearby communities while deploying reinforcements, including military personnel, firefighters, healthcare teams and wildfire specialists.
According to the Interior Ministry, more than 141,000 residents have been evacuated across southwestern France since Wednesday. The evacuations include approximately 110,000 people in Gironde and 31,000 in the neighbouring Landes department.
The wildfire in Landes has consumed more than 2,600 hectares, forcing the evacuation of over 23,000 residents between Thursday evening and Friday morning. Authorities also began relocating another 8,000 people from the town of Parentis as nearly 500 firefighters continued operations in the region.
Elsewhere, firefighters remain engaged in the Var department, where the Ponteves wildfire has burned around 2,700 hectares since Tuesday. Fresh flare-ups have led officials to order additional precautionary evacuations to safeguard nearby communities.
In the coastal area of Cap-Ferret, residents and tourists have been evacuated by both road and sea to the town of Arcachon. Local authorities said approximately 44,000 people have been relocated since the fire first erupted on Wednesday.
French emergency services continue to strengthen both aerial and ground firefighting operations as multiple wildfires remain active across southern France, with officials warning that challenging weather conditions could further complicate containment efforts.
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