Wildfire near Perpignan forces 10,000 evacuations as France battles early heatwave

Thousands were evacuated after a wildfire broke out in Trévillach near Perpignan, the prefecture and Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said, with authorities issuing the order on the day the blaze intensified and forcing more than 10,000 people from over a dozen villages.

The fire has burned at least 4,600 hectares, prefect Pierre Regnault de la Mothe reported on X, and officials warned deteriorating conditions as strong winds threatened to spread the flames further.

Residents described rapid fire spread: Patrice from Trévillach said the blaze approached within 300 metres of homes and that the speed of the advance caused panic among locals.

Organisers of the Tour de France restricted access to the finish of the race’s third stage to keep routes clear for emergency vehicles; the stage begins in Granollers, Spain, and concludes in Les Angles in the Pyrénées-Orientales region.

Race director Christian Prudhomme asked spectators and non-essential personnel to avoid the final 40km and said the usual team vehicle motorcade would be reduced to a minimum to support emergency access.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the EU would deploy four aircraft from Cyprus and Sweden to assist firefighting efforts.

Fires have also affected neighbouring Spain: over 2,200 hectares were destroyed in the Les Gavarres natural reserve, where Catalan authorities later described the blaze as stable and expected full extinguishment during the week, Reuters reported.

Further south in Castellon province, about 500 people were evacuated after a wildfire entered the Sierra de Espadan national park.

Meteorological forecasts indicate temperatures could again reach 40C in south-west France this week, with parts of Portugal and Spain already exceeding 40C, raising continued concerns about wildfire risk and persistence of the heatwave.

BBC Weather Lead Forecaster Matt Taylor noted the current heatwave remains exceptional for the time of year even if it may not break June’s record extremes; limited rainfall and sustained high temperatures keep conditions favourable for more fires.

During June’s record heatwave France recorded its hottest national day on 24 June and reported 2,025 excess deaths; neighbouring Belgium and the Netherlands also recorded elevated excess mortality figures, underscoring the broader human and environmental impacts of accelerating climate change across Europe.