Wildfires lead to mass evacuations on Franco-Spanish border

Wildfires have caused widespread damage on both sides of the Spanish-French border, with several thousand hectares of land burned.

Over 10,000 people have been forced to evacuate due to wildfires in the French Pyrenees, near the border with Spain.

At the centre of the evacuation is a 4,600-hectare fire in Trévillach, near Perpignan, which has been driven by strong winds and recent heatwaves.

The fire has threatened homes in the area, and is expected to cause disruption to the ongoing Tour de France cycle tournament, whose third stage begins in the Spanish city of Granollers, and concludes in Les Angles, France.

Organisers of the tournament have asked fans and non-essential personnel to stay away from the final 40km stretch of the stage.

On the Spanish side of the border, wildfires have destroyed over 2,200 hectares in the Les Gavarres nature reserve, while 500 people have been evacuated after a wildfire entered the Sierra de Espadán Natural Park.

Four aircraft have been dispatched to assist in fighting these fires under the European Union’s (EU) Civil Protection Mechanism and rescEU strategic reserve, from Cyprus and Sweden.

Fires in the same region led to the evacuation of 1,500 campers and the temporary closure of Perpignan Airport earlier this month.