Europe battles wildfires and drought as record heat persists
Greece, France and the Netherlands fight major wildfires, while the UK records its driest July in nearly two centuries amid a prolonged European heatwave.
A spell of unprecedented heat and dry weather continued to grip Europe on Monday, with firefighting aircraft deployed in Greece, crews in France trying to contain a blaze in Provence, and much of the United Kingdom registering its driest July in close to 200 years.
In Greece, wildfires west of Athens broke through containment lines. Strong winds late Monday pushed flames toward mountain settlements, destroying farms and properties and forcing a highway closure. More than 1,000 people have been evacuated from the Porto Germeno area and other zones west of the capital, with over 250 taken off beaches by boats. The fire came a day after two helicopters collided midair, killing two crew members — a Greek and a Dane — and injuring two others. The four were private operators working under contract for the Greek fire service. Officials linked the blaze to a faulty power line at a wind farm, and two contractors were arrested on negligent arson charges.
In France, thousands of evacuees were allowed to return home or to holiday lodgings Monday after a large wildfire was brought under control. The blaze, which burned about 420 square kilometres, is the largest on record in the country and forced more than 224,000 people to flee — the biggest civilian evacuation outside wartime, according to officials. The return includes the Cap Ferret peninsula and Le Porge, the hardest-hit municipality, where 183 homes were destroyed. Campsites remain shut. A separate fire in Provence did not rekindle overnight but was still not contained, with about 1,500 firefighters reinforcing barrier lines.
Britain's weather service said provisional data show England and Wales had their driest July in nearly two centuries after a prolonged heatwave and lack of rain. All of Wales and over half of England are now officially in drought. Wales tied its record for the warmest mean July temperature, while England and the UK as a whole had their second-warmest July.
The European Union's Copernicus climate service says Europe is warming more than twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, leaving vegetation drier and more fire-prone. The European Forest Fire Information System warns that wildfire risk remains high across parts of the continent until August 5, including in northern nations. In the Netherlands, firefighters battled a large forest fire in Limburg province, with two military Chinook helicopters dropping water and train services halted between two towns. A nearby campsite was evacuated due to heavy smoke, according to media reports.
