France wildfire update: Landes fire stabilises as heatwave moves east

A major wildfire in Landes has now burned around 1,700 hectares, but firefighters report a more favourable situation on Sunday (August 16) as cooler weather arrives in the west of France.

The fire, which began on Thursday, did not experience any major flare-ups overnight, although some 650 people remain evacuated and authorities say it is still dangerous.

Landes prefect Gilles Clavreul said the situation was “developing rather favourably” after a night of active firefighting.

However, the area affected by the fire has been revised upwards from some 1,600 to 1,700 hectares. 

Mr Clavreul said this did not represent a major expansion of the fire, but reflected improved mapping using drones.

Firefighters will focus mainly on ground operations on Sunday, using techniques including watering, earthmoving and tactical fires where appropriate.

“The situation is favourable compared with yesterday, that is clear,” Mr Clavreul said, while warning that there was still “a lot of work ahead”.

Evacuation measures remain in place and authorities have ruled out an immediate return home for those affected.

“It is still dangerous,” Mr Clavreul said.

The fire is the third major blaze this summer in the Landes de Gascogne forest, following fires at Biscarrosse, which burned around 3,700 hectares, and Saumos in neighbouring Gironde, where about 42,000 hectares were destroyed.

Other fires around France

In Ardennes, a fire at Monthermé had burned around 100 hectares by Saturday evening. 

The prefecture described the situation as “unfavourable”, with firefighters facing steep, difficult terrain and limited access to water. A Dash aircraft was used to drop fire retardant.

In the south, firefighters have also been dealing with the aftermath of the Drôme fire, which burned around 400 hectares after starting earlier in the month. The blaze has previously reignited, requiring hundreds of firefighters to remain deployed in the area.

The scale of the current fire season is exceptional. Nearly 100,000 hectares have burned in France this year, according to the European Forest Fire Information System, making 2026 the worst year in two decades of satellite-based monitoring.

Heatwave moves east

The heatwave warning has now retreated towards south-eastern France, with 28 departments on orange alert on Sunday.

Météo-France said temperatures would generally reach 28-34C, rising to 35-38C from the Lyon area through the Rhône valley and Mediterranean regions.

The heatwave is expected to continue in parts of the south-east until the middle of next week.

Storm risk falls

The risk of severe storms has also eased, with no departments on orange storm alert for Sunday or Monday.

Storms remain possible in the south-west, however, with isolated heavy rain, hail and gusts potentially reaching 80-90km/h.