Extreme weather
July 22, 2026, 10:52 p.mJuly 22, 2026, 10:52 p.m
Thousands of tourists have been evacuated as a precautionary measure due to a forest fire on the French Atlantic coast near Bordeaux. As the prefecture in Bordeaux announced in the evening, the fire that broke out in the town of Saumos that morning had already spread to an area of 800 hectares. Due to the extremely unfavorable weather conditions, the fire is being fought with a large contingent of 500 firefighters, four firefighting aircraft and 150 emergency vehicles. So far no one has been injured.
A new forest fire is declared in the après-middle début close by #Bordeaux.
D’importants moyens de secours sont mobilisés sur place. The starting point is a course plus 70 hectares in the sector #Saumos. The impressive panache of the smoke is visible in… pic.twitter.com/HmvRnlhEI0
— vigiprevention_meteo (@VigipreventionM) July 22, 2026
For security reasons, the prefect of the Gironde department ordered extensive evacuations in the afternoon. Around 700 residents had to leave two parts of the town of Le Porge, and the “La Grigne” campsite there with around 3,500 holidaymakers was evacuated. Those affected were directed to the nearby holiday resort of Lacanau. A beach in Le Porge, where around 600 vehicles were located, was also evacuated. The evacuation measures and road closures were coordinated by around 90 gendarmerie officers.
As the prefect emphasized, the highest forest fire warning level, red, applies to the Gironde department. The authorities’ instructions must be strictly followed. The population was warned to be extremely careful. Just on Tuesday, two firefighters were killed in another natural fire at Bordeaux airport after they were trapped in their vehicle by the flames. (sda/dpa)