Massive wildfires sweeping through southwestern France are threatening key defense and nuclear sites near Bordeaux, forcing evacuations and emergency measures at missile factories, military research facilities and aerospace plants, according to reports.
The escalating blazes come as France braces for its fourth major heat wave of the year Tuesday, with soaring temperatures and arid conditions increasing pressure on crews battling massive wildfires near Bordeaux, according to Reuters.
Temperatures in the French region were forecast to reach 91 degrees Fahrenheit (33 degrees Celsius), about 13 degrees (7 degrees Celsius) above normal, according to the Reuters Climate Monitor.
EUROPE’S FIRES REVEAL DEADLY MIX OF RECORD HEAT, HUMAN ERROR, ARSON AND LAND MISMANAGEMENT
“The situation we are dealing with today is the most severe we have ever recorded, the toughest since the Second World War,” President Emmanuel Macron, who flew to the area, had said Sunday.
French Economy Minister Roland Lescure said the fires have disrupted more than 13,000 businesses in the Gironde region, with many forced to close or evacuate.
According to The Telegraph, the fires are closing in on missile and rocket factories that store explosive materials.
At least seven sites holding hazardous substances are within 12 miles of the blaze.
FRANCE RECORDS MORE THAN 5,700 EXCESS DEATHS DURING HISTORIC EARLY SUMMER HEAT WAVE
Saint-Médard-en-Jalles, to the west-northwest, is one of the evacuated towns and is home to a large factory that produces propellants for Ariane space rockets and France’s strategic missiles.
A nearby plant in Sainte-Hélène also produces ammonium perchlorate, a key oxidizer used in solid rocket propellants.
According to Defense News, the fires are also threatening factories that make key parts for France’s nuclear missiles, Rafale fighter jets and military missiles.
ArianeGroup evacuated employees from sites in the fire zone, while France’s Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) closed its military research center in Le Barp as the wildfires first advanced toward Bordeaux.
Officials said there is no risk of radioactive leakage because the facility contains no nuclear materials, the outlet reported.
EUROPE’S FIRES REVEAL DEADLY MIX OF RECORD HEAT, HUMAN ERROR, ARSON AND LAND MISMANAGEMENT
French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu said July 24 that protective measures had been deployed around the sites “given the nature of the products stored there,” Le Monde said.
Meanwhile, France’s Defense Ministry said 1,500 military personnel have been deployed since Friday to support firefighting operations and help secure strategic industrial sites.
So far, the fires have scorched more than 104,000 acres (42,000 hectares) in the Gironde region, making them among France’s largest wildfires on record.
Authorities said about 240 homes have been destroyed, while nearly 4,000 holidaymakers have been evacuated from campsites, holiday villages and tourist resorts in Lacanau, about 35 miles west of Bordeaux.
As France and Spain battle one of Europe’s worst wildfire seasons in decades, roughly 360,000 people have been forced to evacuate in recent days.
