Heat Threatens Hard-Won Progress as France and Spain Wildfires Continue
Updated 11:19 p.m. CEST, Tuesday, July 28, 2026 — Bordeaux, France, and Madrid, Spain
Firefighters in France and Spain gained ground Tuesday, allowing tens of thousands of residents to return home, but renewed heat and fresh flare-ups kept both countries on emergency footing. In France’s Gironde region, approximately 60,000 people were cleared to return to communities near Bordeaux, even as officials ordered another 4,000 people to leave vacation sites around Lacanau. Fresh flames near Grand Crohot prompted an expanded aerial response involving 23 planes and helicopters, while authorities warned that the massive fire remained dangerously unstable. Associated Press
Crews are monitoring smoldering vegetation across Gironde as temperatures rise and humidity falls. At least 150 homes have been destroyed in Le Porge, 110 firefighters have been injured, and crews have constructed more than 100 kilometers of firebreaks. About 15,000 evacuees have also returned home in neighboring Landes, where the fire’s advance has stopped, but officials caution that neither blaze is extinguished and that hot spots could reignite for days or weeks.
In Spain, evacuation orders were lifted in eight Madrid-region municipalities and five communities in Ávila after officials reported no significant advance by the main fires during the previous 24 hours. Some restrictions remain: Robledo de Chavela, Valdemaqueda and several other communities or residential areas are still evacuated or confined. Madrid’s Sierra Oeste fire has affected roughly 34,000 hectares, while the Ávila blaze—the largest recorded in Spain—has burned more than 50,000 hectares. Community of Madrid El País
The improvements may be tested quickly as Spain enters its fourth heat wave of the summer, with temperatures in some areas expected to exceed 40 degrees Celsius, or 104 Fahrenheit. Across France and Spain, the fires have displaced roughly 330,000 people from homes and vacation areas, and smoke continues to affect communities well beyond the burn zones. Authorities are urging residents to avoid fire-affected districts, keep doors and windows closed when smoke is present, and remain ready to leave again if changing winds or renewed flames force emergency orders.