LEGE-CAP FERRET – A shift in the weather pattern offers a glimmer of hope for the drought-stricken southwest of France. A promising mix of higher humidity, cooler temperatures, and anticipated rainfall on Thursday could potentially bring some relief to areas fighting widespread wildfires. These blazes have scorched a region equivalent to four times the size of Paris over the past few weeks.
As moisture moves inland from the Atlantic coast, Meteo France, the national weather service, predicts light rain in Lege-Cap Ferret. This town, nestled on a peninsula, has been at the forefront of the area ravaged by the relentless wildfires.
Authorities noted a “rather calm” night, as the inferno has not expanded beyond its current 42,000 hectares (approximately 162 square miles). Despite the slight reprieve, fire crews remain on full alert with over 2,200 firefighters supported by more than 20 aircraft.
Rain graced Bordeaux, situated to the east, early on Thursday. However, the downpour came short of the amount needed to significantly impact the hardest-hit regions, where dry sandy terrain and thick pine brush continue to fuel the flames.
Despite the daunting conditions, Sophie Brocas, the prefect of the Gironde region, expressed a cautious optimism that the drop in temperature might offer some much-needed assistance in combating the fierce fires.
“If that’s confirmed, we could foresee a return to a more normal life for residents, but also for businesses that need to work,” she told reporters late Wednesday.
Humidity reached 80% overnight but was expected to drop by midday, authorities said. Some rainfall was expected along the coast that “could reach the fire zone,” Gironde officials said in a morning note.
Temperatures that peaked around 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) a day earlier were set to drop Thursday, topping out at 27 C (80 F) along the coast. An “orange” heat wave alert — the second-highest level after “red” — was lifted shortly before dawn.
The fires in the Bordeaux wine-growing, forested and tourism-heavy region are among the blazes that have swept across pockets of southern Europe in recent weeks, including Spain and Greece.
On Thursday, firefighters were tackling multiple forest fires in four of Turkey’s western provinces, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
Blazes in touristic Mugla and Antalya and elsewhere raged overnight as hot weather and strong winds gripped the region. Residents were evacuated as teams with firefighting planes and helicopters battled the fires.
A day earlier, authorities in neighboring Greece said three firefighters had died on the island on Crete, as the wildfire emergency stretched from the Atlantic coast to the eastern Mediterranean.
At the peak of the evacuations, a third of a million people were driven from homes and vacation sites in France and Spain.
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