France and Spain evacuate 260,000 as ‘unprecedented’ wildfires spread

Wildfires spread across France and Spain on 24 July 2026 after heatwaves left the land parched, forcing mass evacuations. Figures for the number of people who fled range from more than 150,000 to 260,000, and some of the fires were described as out of control. The Financial Times called the fires 'unprecedented'. One blaze in Spain also forced the evacuation of NASA's Deep Space Network complex there.