Weather 
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Firefighters in France and Spain raced to contain huge wildfires on Tuesday before another surge in temperatures threatens to worsen conditions.
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More than 300,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in the two countries, in what the Associated Press described as one of Europe’s largest evacuation operations in decades.
In southwestern France, firefighters managed to prevent a blaze near Bordeaux from expanding overnight, although several flare-ups were reported. The fire has burned around 42,000 hectares over six days, forced 220,000 people to evacuate and destroyed 240 homes.
President Emmanuel Macron warned that “the coming weeks will be tough and we have to hold out”.
In Spain, firefighters are battling blazes west of Madrid which have forced around 60,000 people to evacuate. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said the coming hours would be “absolutely decisive” as temperatures begin rising again.
The EU has deployed additional water-bombing aircraft to France, but Crisis Management Commissioner Hadja Lahbib warned that resources could soon be needed elsewhere.
“Extreme conditions are looming for Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, in addition to France, the Iberian Peninsula… where the situation is expected to worsen, including in Portugal starting today,” Lahbib said.
Additional sources • AFP, AP
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