As of July 25 (local time), more than 260,000 residents have been evacuated due to the worst wildfires to hit France and Spain.

Fire authorities are mobilizing all available personnel and resources to extinguish the fires, but adverse weather conditions are hindering response efforts on the ground.

According to the French daily Le Figaro, French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez stated during a midday briefing that wildfires that began in the southwestern region on the 22nd continue to spread, with over 40,000 hectares burned in the Gironde department alone so far.

The minister added that including these figures, approximately 98,000 hectares have burned in France since January of this year, marking a record-breaking scale.

Gironde is a local government bordering the Atlantic Ocean, and its central city is Bordeaux, which is famous for wine.

Although there are no casualties yet, Minister Nunez announced that 167,000 people have been evacuated in Gironde alone so far.

He also stated that 30,000 people have been evacuated due to wildfires in the Landes department, which borders Gironde.

A total of 197,000 people have been evacuated in France alone due to these wildfires, and additional evacuation orders are highly likely to be issued depending on how the flames spread.
 
(Photo: Yonhap News)