Two wildfires have been burning in the Gironde département in south west France for a week, and a total of 37,000 people have now been evacuated from the area.
One of the fires has reached the coast at Dune du Pilat, Europe’s tallest sand dune, which is also a popular spot for camping. At least five campsites sited close to the dune are “90 percent destroyed” according to the local Préfet Fabienne Buccio.
The destroyed sites are; La Forêt du Pilat, La Dune, Pyla Camping, Le Petit Nice and Yellow Village panorama du Pyla.
Meanwhile in Bordeaux, 60km away from the fire, the city is engulfed in a thick “smog” caused by smoke from the fires, while locals have complained of a strong smell of smoke.
Photos of the city show it covered in a haze, while air quality maps for the whole region show dangerous levels of air pollution.
Bordeaux, 2h du matin. pic.twitter.com/RpC8AaksOv
— Marie (@mariedehayes) July 19, 2022
More than 2,000 firefighters are still battling the flames in Gironde, and a sudden change in the wind direction on Monday afternoon saw three further towns evacuated.
A wildfire also broke out in Brittany on Monday, in the département of Finistère – 160 firefighters are on the scene.
Climate change is impacting Europe now but both Africa and Asia experience worse conditions.