emperatures soaring above 40°C turn forests in France, Spain, and Italy into a powder keg, disrupting high-speed trains and tourism.

An unforgiving combination of extreme heatwaves and severe drought has turned Southern Europe into the epicenter of an unprecedented climate crisis this Thursday (23). Out-of-control wildfires have already forced the emergency evacuation of over 13,600 people, destroyed tens of thousands of hectares of vegetation, and claimed the lives of three firefighters on duty in France and Italy.

Scientists from the World Weather Attribution group confirm that global warming has drastically worsened water evaporation, leaving the European soil deeply dry and highly vulnerable to fast-spreading blazes.

France: Tourism Disrupted and National Mourning

In the Le Porge region near Bordeaux, the French government carried out a mass evacuation, removing more than 10,000 people—mostly tourists staying at local campsites. The fire in the country's southwest has consumed 2,400 hectares of pine trees in less than 48 hours. France declared national mourning following the deaths of two firefighters whose truck was engulfed by flames in the Gironde region.

Spain: Transport Chaos Near Madrid

The advancing fires in Spain triggered a temporary shutdown of the high-speed train line connecting Madrid to Barcelona, the country's busiest transport corridor. Around 3,500 residents were evacuated from residential areas west of the capital with military support. The most concerning hotspot is in Guadalajara, where more than 32,000 hectares have already been scorched.

Italy: Hospitals on Alert in Sicily

On the island of Sicily, where thermometers breached the 45°C mark, fires surrounded urban areas and forced the urgent transfer of 22 patients from a local medical clinic. A firefighter died while battling the flames in the San Cataldo region. Local authorities have launched a criminal investigation amid suspicions that more than 160 fire fronts in Calabria were intentionally set by arsonists.

Civil defense agencies across all three nations remain on high alert, with no rain or temperature drops forecast for the coming days.