More than 10,000 residents were ordered to evacuate two dozen towns and villages in the Pyrénées-Orientales department of southwestern France on Monday, as a wildfire that began on Saturday evening continued to spread, according to local authorities. The blaze, fanned by strong winds, high heat and exceptionally dry air, had consumed approximately 4,600 hectares by Monday morning, the prefect said. Five people were injured, including one firefighter, and the fire prompted organisers of the Tour de France to bar spectators from the final 40 kilometres of the third stage, which crossed into France from Spain, to keep roads clear for emergency vehicles.

The European Commission announced the deployment of four water-bombing aircraft from Cyprus and Sweden to reinforce French firefighters, while the interior minister, Laurent Nunez, warned that conditions were deteriorating again and that “the battle resumes today.” Across the border in Spain, a separate fire in Catalonia’s Les Gavarres natural area had burned 2,200 hectares, 97 per cent of it protected land, though Catalan authorities said it was stable and expected to be fully extinguished within the week. Further south, in Castellón province, about 500 people were evacuated after a fire entered the Sierra de Espadán national park.

In Portugal, emergency services reported that a fire in the northern Vouzela region had been brought 80 per cent under control after scorching some 13,000 hectares and injuring nine people. Spain and Italy sent firefighting aircraft and ground crews under the EU civil protection mechanism. In Greece, a fire that broke out near Thessaloniki on Saturday spread to a recycling plant, releasing toxic smoke that prompted authorities to advise residents in parts of the country’s second-largest city to stay indoors. A separate blaze west of Athens was being fought by more than 200 firefighters and 29 aircraft, though it had abated by Monday.

The fires follow heatwaves in May and June that scientists from the World Weather Attribution group said would have been “virtually impossible” without climate change. The European Forest Fire Information System reported that by early July, fires had burned about 118,700 hectares across the EU, well above the long-term average for this point in the season. Firefighters across the region continued to battle the blazes, with authorities warning that strong winds and temperatures exceeding 40°C could hamper containment efforts.