In a summer of record heat waves, France and Spain are now facing wildfires that have forced the evacuations of more than 300,000 people.
In a summer of record heat waves, France and Spain are now facing wildfires that have forced the evacuations of more than 300,000 people. Scientists say that a sharp swing from wet to dry weather, a signature of climate change, helped fuel the blazes.
Although western Europe saw a rainy start to the year, “the summer of 2026 is emerging as one of Europe’s most significant heat and drought events in recent years,” said scientists at World Weather Attribution.
Last month was the hottest June on record in Western Europe, which recorded more than 10,000 excess deaths during an unprecedented heat wave. Fires are now burning near Bordeaux, France, and Madrid, Spain, and have scorched hundreds of thousands of acres in both countries. In some places, towering columns of smoke have even given rise to “fire clouds,” which can generate high winds and lightning strikes that further the spread of fire.
Read More: Yale Environment 360
Photo Credit: elliskj via Pixabay
