Bordeaux on edge amid renewed wildfire warnings
Bordeaux is facing severe wildfire threats, leading to mass evacuations and the conversion of exhibition centers into shelters. Authorities are bracing for an upcoming heatwave that could exacerbate the tinder-dry conditions.
Why it matters
The situation underscores the increasing frequency and severity of climate-driven natural disasters in Europe, impacting both local residents and the tourism industry.
For days, residents and visitors have nervously followed reports of a massive wildfire advancing erratically towards the city.
By the weekend, there was no mistaking how close it had come - with shifting winds bringing smoke and ash into a city usually at the height of its tourism season.
Just north of central Bordeaux, the city's main exhibition centre has been converted into a major evacuation hub.
Here, thousands of people are waiting for news of when they can return to their homes in the Gironde region - and indeed if their homes still stand.
Many are elderly, now forced to sleep on makeshift camp beds - like 80-year-old Paula, who was forced to abandon her home in Saint-Médard-en-Jalles on Friday night.
Paula said she learned of the evacuation through a message on her phone, reading: 'It's time to go. Please leave your house and go to the safe place.'
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