Three firefighters have died as wildfires continue to ravage southern Europe. Italy’s Interior Minister said a firefighter died while battling a blaze on the island of Sicily, while his French counterpart said two firefighters had died while tackling a fire near the city of Bordeaux’s airport.
Alessandro Marchi died after suffering a health problem while firefighting near the tourist town of San Cataldo in central Sicily, Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said.
“He lost his life while carrying out his duty, in service to the community,” Piantedosi added in a post on X.
Blazes near Sicily’s capital Palermo have closed roads, caused power cuts and forced people from their homes. In the southern province of Agrigento, more than 100 people have been evacuated.
Sicilian President Renato Schifani said on Wednesday that 50 fires were still burning on the island and 6,000 people, including firefighters, had been deployed to tackle the flames.
Over in France, more than 10,000 people were evacuated overnight to safety in southwestern France as a rapidly spreading wildfire scorched through 2,000 hectares of land west of the city of Bordeaux, officials said on Thursday.
Two French firefighters, both 34, lost their lives while tackling a fire near Bordeaux- Mérignac airport on Wednesday, local media reported.
Bordeaux Prosecutor Renaud Gaudeul said an investigation had been opened on suspicion of deliberate arson, resulting in the deaths of the firefighters.
"I am not saying we have definitive evidence proving a deliberate act, but at the current stage of the investigation, this is the line of inquiry we are prioritising," he said.
Laurent Nuñez, France’s Interior Minister, expressed his “unwavering support,” to the deceased firefighters’ families and loved ones in a statement on X.
Over in the southwest of France near Saumos, around 500 firefighters are battling a wildfire where 600 people have been evacuated to safety, Nuñez added. He said the fire had already spread across 600 hectares.
Nuñez also said 128 people have been arrested in connection with wildfire-related incidents since the start of the fire season.
Meanwhile, on Thursday morning French firefighters and firefighting aircraft battle a wildfire on mountain slopes in the Hautes-Alpes department near L'Argeniere-La-Besse.
Authorities also reported new blazes in the southeastern city of Nice on Wednesday (22 July), as well as in the central Corrèze department.
The Reuters Climate Monitor, an interactive tool providing real-time data, showed the average high temperature across Western Europe is forecast to be 26.6 degrees Celsius (79.8 degrees Fahrenheit), which is 3 degrees above the normal high for 22 July in the period from 1961 to 1990.
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