Deadly Wildfires Sweep Across Southern Europe
Wildfires driven by a punishing heatwave are burning across southern Europe, killing two firefighters on the Greek island of Crete and forcing evacuations in France, Spain and Turkey. A blaze in south-western France was reported to have grown larger than the area of Paris, threatening to reignite a huge fire near Bordeaux. The European Commission urged stronger action on climate change.
The fires are the deadly edge of a continent-wide heat crisis that has also gripped Britain, where drought was declared across half of England on the same day. Thousands of firefighters and water-bombing aircraft have been deployed as tinder-dry landscapes ignite, and officials warn the worst of the season may be still to come. Scientists link the intensifying fires to a warming climate that is lengthening and sharpening Europe’s summers. Watch the fire fronts in France and Greece and whether more evacuations follow.