More than 20,000 residents and holidaymakers were evacuated from coastal areas of southwestern France on Thursday as a fast-moving wildfire tore through pine forests near Bordeaux. Simultaneously, firefighters in Spain and Italy battled multiple blazes that have killed at least three emergency workers and scorched tens of thousands of hectares, according to local authorities.

Two French firefighters died on Tuesday while tackling a separate fire near Bordeaux airport, and an Italian firefighter died in Sicily on Wednesday, the respective interior ministers confirmed. In France’s Gironde department, the fire consumed between 2,400 and 3,400 hectares—authorities provided differing estimates—while a second blaze in the Var department burned 2,500 hectares. Spanish emergency services reported that a fire in Guadalajara province had destroyed 32,000 hectares, and a new outbreak near Toledo forced evacuations before being partially contained. In Sicily, around 6,000 personnel fought dozens of fires as temperatures exceeded 40C.

The cause of the Gironde fire remains unconfirmed. The mayor of Le Porge told reporters it may have been sparked by a brush-clearing machine, but police have opened an investigation and have not yet determined the origin. In Italy’s Calabria region, local civil protection officials alleged that arsonists tied rags soaked in flammable liquid to the tails of stray cats to spread flames; authorities are investigating the claims. French officials have also launched an inquiry into the Var fire.

Scientists from the World Weather Attribution group linked the severe drought and heat to human-caused climate change, noting that such conditions render vegetation highly flammable. France’s interior minister said more than 12,500 fires have broken out this year, burning 44,000 hectares—already exceeding the 2022 total. The European Forest Fire Information System recorded that the area burned in the EU so far this year is the second largest in two decades. As of Thursday evening, the Gironde fire remained uncontained, with 700 firefighters and water-bombing aircraft deployed. Spanish authorities warned of “extreme” wildfire risk, while in Sicily about 50 of the 344 fires reported on Wednesday were still active. No further casualties have been reported, and provisional tolls may be revised.