France wildfire grows four times the size of Paris; three firefighters killed

An uncontained wildfire four times the size of Paris threatened to surge again in southwest France on Wednesday as three firefighters died in Greece and crews across southern Europe confronted a punishing mix of heat drought and strong windsThe deaths on Crete brought a fatal new dimension to a wildfire emergency stretching from the Atlantic coast to the eastern Mediterranean At the peak of the evacuations a third of a million people were driven from homes and vacation sites in France and SpainIn Frances Gironde region the countrys biggest blaze had not spread during a calm night authorities said But as temperatures approached 40 degrees Celsius Wednesday afternoon and winds strengthened the reprieve threatened to be shortlivedThe landscape was so combustible that investigators believe routine brushclearing work near a highvoltage line may have sparked the inferno even though the work appeared to comply with regulationsAt the command centre in Lege firefighters bent over maps spread across a car hood tracking three danger zones northern CapFerret the wooded corridor around Marcheprime Cestas and SaintJeandIllac and a military site near Martignas where a major outbreak forced a large deploymentBoth firefighters and residents mobilise against the blazeMore than 2200 firefighters and over 20 aircraft remained mobilised backed by crews from across France and European partners We strike quickly and strike hard at any new smoke emissions Gironde fire commander Matthieu Jomain saidBeyond the command centre civilians were trying to hold the line themselves At Souge volunteers flooded the edges of dirt tracks while a local digger driver plowed through stillburning soil trying to keep flames from crossing back when the expected west wind arrived In Lacanau residents pumped water from a lake into tanks headed for hot spots and firefighters cisternsIf one day the fire starts in our neck of the woods I know very well that all the people here would do the same for us said Flavien Dubuch 33 who drove from SaintEmilion with his father to helpHottest day this weekThe advance of major fires in the Landes and Var regions has been halted That left Gironde as Frances biggest remaining wildfire battle Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said The Gironde fire forced 220000 people to flee at the peak of the crisis Tens of thousands have since been allowed home but authorities warned that the danger had not passedExtreme heat strips moisture from vegetation and drives down humidity turning grasses brush and forest litter into fasterburning fuel Investigators believe contractors working near a highvoltage line for powergrid operator Enedis ignited the blaze while using a brushcutting machine Bordeaux prosecutor Renaud Gaudeul saidMeteoFrance said Wednesday would be the hottest and driest day of the week with elevated wildfire danger across every region of France Drought now covers mainland France and Corsica with soils nearing the record dryness reached in August 2022Smoke from the Gironde and Landes fires also pushed particulate pollution higher across both departments regional airquality monitors saidMore evacuations ordered in FranceGironde authorities ordered 4000 more people out of tourist sites along the Atlantic coast on Tuesday widening what may be Frances largest peacetime evacuation The situation remains complicated Thats clear Were not out of the woods said Gironde prefect Sophie Brocas who also authorised 60000 evacuees to return to three Bordeaux suburbs untouched by fireThe opposing movements thousands ordered out of coastal resorts as others returned with mobile phones on and emergency bags packed captured how precarious the situation remains The disruption was spreading beyond the burn zone into Bordeauxs peak tourism seasonEdouard le Grix de la Salle who runs Chateau du Grand Verdus with his brother said official appeals to avoid the region threatened its winetourism trade How did they not think about protecting that sector he told The Associated PressAt one point the Gironde blaze created a black thundercloud electrified and lit from within that generated lightning violent winds and new fires beyond the original front The pyrocumulonimbus was the first recorded in FranceFire in Greece turns deadly for firefightersTwo firefighters died Wednesday while battling a wildfire in the Rethymno region of Crete Greeces fire department said They were among about 125 firefighters confronting flames fanned by strong winds with four helicopters and four waterdropping planes deployedThe circumstances of their deaths were not immediately clear The department said they died in the line of duty to protect the lives and property of citizens and the natural environment A third firefighter also died Wednesday outside the fire perimeter after tackling a separate blaze in Greeces southern Peloponnese regionTens of thousands begin returning home in SpainAt the height of the crisis roughly 330000 people were driven from homes and vacation sites across France and SpainTens of thousands of people began returning home in central Spain after firefighters made progress around Madrid and Avila Evacuation orders were lifted for about 20000 people in the Madrid region while stayathome restrictions ended for another 14000But 10000 people remain under evacuation orders in Castellon where a fire was still out of control as Spain braced for its fourth heat wave of the summer More than 1160 square kilometres have burned across France this year according to the Interior MinistryEurope is the worlds fastestwarming continent warming at more than twice the global average according to the European Unions Copernicus climate service Western Europe recorded its hottest June on record with extreme heat and widespread dryness contributing to the spread and intensification of fires in France and Spain Copernicus saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability 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