Out-of-Control Wildfire Is 'at the Gates' of Bordeaux

A raging wildfire in southwest France forced the evacuation of 55,000 people overnight Sunday, bringing the total forced out of their homes to a staggering 220,000 in one region alone as flames crept closer to the wine region city of Bordeaux. Shifting and gusting winds, as well as arid conditions, complicated efforts to limit the spread of the monster blaze that has burned out of control since midweek in France's Gironde region, where Bordeaux is located. Authorities issued overnight evacuation orders for five more localities southwest of the historic city, the AP reports. The mayor described the blaze, about 9 miles from Bordeaux at its closest point, as being "at the gates."

"The situation remains very unfavorable," French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said after what he described as "another difficult night" for fire crews battling round-the-clock against the blaze that has burned an area four times the size of Paris. "The fire became extremely virulent again and unpredictable, generating its own winds and advancing erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area," Nunez posted on X. "It became calmer by the end of the night," the minister added. By Sunday morning, an estimated 162 square miles had burned in Gironde, officials said, much of it forest and scrubland made tinder-dry by successive heat waves. That is seven times the area of Manhattan island and four times the size of Paris.

• Spain records first death: Wildfires burned out of control around Madrid, and evacuations were carried out Sunday in the Valencia region. A man was killed in a wildfire in Manises that raged for four hours Saturday, the local government said, Spain's first recorded death in the latest fires. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Sunday that the night was "very positive in terms of bringing the flames under control." Evacuees fretted about what they'll find when they're allowed to return. "It looked like the apocalypse. You couldn't see anything. Everything was covered in ash," said Rocío Domínguez, who evacuated from Chapineria, west of Madrid. "We don't know when we get to the town, if we'll have half the house burned down or we'll have it intact or we won't have a house," she said. "All the clothes, all the memories, everything."