Video footage of horses fleeing flames provides dramatic imagery of wildfires devastating southwestern France and parts of Spain. Western Europe has experienced its hottest June on record. Extreme heat is fueling fires in France and Spain, forcing around 330,000 people to evacuate their homes.
A clip from Biscarrosse, about 40 miles southwest of Bordeaux, shows horses galloping down a street. They were released by equestrian center staff who believed this gave them a better chance of survival. Smoke, heat, and flames made trailer evacuation impossible. Marine Champeval, manager of the Ecuries d’en Hill stables, told Le Monde they decided animal instinct would keep the horses safe. Most of the 100 horses were evacuated safely, but about 10 remained in the pastures.
We decided to break down the fences and let them fend for themselves. We could not leave them trapped in the fields, after all. And it worked. The horses are all safe and sound.
Champeval reported.
In a Facebook post, the stables mentioned the horses could not return due to the destruction of its storage shed, shelters, and fences. They announced an online appeal, which as of Tuesday had raised over 11,000 euros ($12,500). Newsweek has reached out to Ecuries d’en Hill for further comment.
As of Tuesday, the clip of fleeing horses dated July 23 had been viewed at least one million times. French authorities noted France is facing blazes of exceptional intensity in both Gironde and the south. Remi Lassoureille, leading forest fire efforts in the Gironde region, said approximately 42,000 hectares had burned over the past six days, destroying 240 homes.
More than 2,000 firefighters continue battling the blazes, which stabilized overnight, although flare-ups were detected north of Le Porge and in dunes north of Cap Ferret. Officials warned that smoldering vegetation and rising temperatures could trigger fresh outbreaks. French President Emmanuel Macron described the wildfires near Bordeaux as the toughest since the Second World War. He remarked, the situation we are dealing with is the most severe we have ever recorded.
Nearly 4,000 people were evacuated on Tuesday from campsites, tourist residences, holiday villages, and leisure parks around Lacanau on France’s Atlantic coast.
Spain Declares National Emergency
In Spain, authorities evacuated around 79,000 people and ordered another 30,000 to stay home after Madrid declared a national emergency for the wildfires. Two large fires threatened to merge into a single mega-blaze in wooded hills west of Madrid. There were evacuations from another blaze in Castellón province, while fires in Ávila, west of Madrid, became Spain’s largest on record, spanning more than 193 square miles, according to the Spanish government.
Fires in Spain this year have burned 590 square miles, six times more than the same period last year.
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