LEGE-CAP FERRET, France (AP) 鈥� French President Emmanuel Macron called a crisis meeting Monday focusing on monster, that have forced more than 250,000 people to , amid a first glimmer of hope that the spread of the largest blaze may have slowed.
In the Gironde region of southwest France, where an area four times the size of Paris, the prefecture said the situation overnight had remained 鈥済lobally stable” 鈥� a change from successive days where the giant blaze raging since last week had edged closer to the wine region city of Bordeaux.
No new evacuations were announced. But with France about to enter its peak August tourist season, Gironde authorities took more steps to keep vacationers away, banning holiday camps for children and for people with disabilities.
On the ground and in the air, with water- and retardant-dropping aircraft, the massive firefighting effort was engaged in a race against time, battling to make progress before a forecast surge in temperatures from Tuesday that could make fighting flames more difficult.
The government crisis meeting was scheduled for Monday morning, with Macron presiding. In a weekend post on X, he pledged long-term support for fire-hit communities, saying: 鈥淲e will rebuild, we will repair and we will be present for as long as necessary.鈥�
wildfires have burned out of control around Madrid. Fire evacuations were also carried out Sunday in the Valencia region.
A total of 76,000 people have been evacuated in Spain while 30,000 others have been confined to their homes, the government said.
Evacuees fretted about what they鈥檒l find when they鈥檙e allowed to return.
鈥淚t looked like the apocalypse. You couldn鈥檛 see anything. Everything was covered in ash,鈥� said Roc铆o Dom铆nguez, who evacuated with her dog, Simba, from Chapiner铆a, west of Madrid.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 know when we get to the town, if we鈥檒l have half the house burned down or we鈥檒l have it intact or we won鈥檛 have a house,鈥� she said. 鈥淎ll the clothes, all the memories, everything.鈥�
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
