Wildfires continue to rage in France
More than 220,000 people have been evacuated due to wildfires in France’s Gironde region as firefighters continue to fight the fires, French authorities said. CNN’s Melissa Bell reports.
Europe has seen more wildfires than usual this summer as intense heat has dried out vegetation and turned the landscape into a tinder box.
If a spark does fly, the flames will more easily spread throughout the plant because the plant is very dry. The situation has been made worse by a wet winter that brought in new vegetation, meaning there is also a potential ignition.
Data from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) shows that much more land has been burned on the continent this year than the annual average for the same period. Still, as of July 22, slightly less land had been burned across the continent than during the same period last year, the worst year on record.
However, the situation in France remains unprecedented. The country has already seen more than 300 wildfires this year, compared with an annual average of 93, according to EFFIS.
The climate crisis is making the climate hotter and drier, sucking water from rivers, lakes and soils, drying out landscapes and causing more intense fire seasons.
Soil moisture in France is at its lowest ever since the beginning of summer and is approaching the lowest levels on record, according to the meteorological bureau Météo-France.
CNN’s Max Saltman contributed reporting.
