With wildfires raging in France and Spain, fire crews race against next heat wave
French President Emmanuel Macron has urged firefighting crews to remain resilient as they battle massive, unprecedented wildfires in the southwest region. With thousands of people displaced and another heat wave approaching, authorities are racing to contain the flames before conditions worsen.
Why it matters
The increasing frequency of extreme weather events like these wildfires highlights the growing impact of climate change on European infrastructure and public safety.
LEGE-CAP FERRET, France — French President Emmanuel Macron urged fire crews to "stay strong" as they battled Monday to bring a monster wildfire under control, warning that the fight will take time but vowing, "We will win this battle together."
Europe France continues to fight devastating wildfires, while progress is made in Spain On a visit to a coordination center for the massive firefighting effort in southwest France, Macron heard how the blaze raging since last week has been wildly unpredictable, transforming at times into a self-feeding fire storm as it burned through an area four times the size of Paris and forced 220,000 people to flee their homes.
"We're facing a completely unprecedented fire," Macron said, describing the situation as France's worst fire-related crisis since World War II.
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