Raging wildfires hit another popular British holiday destination: Turkey next to suffer deadly blazes as Europe swelters in 43C heat
Flames ripped through the forested mountains surrounding the city in northwest Turkey overnight, bringing a red glow to the night sky.
Bursa governor's office said more than 1,760 people had been safely evacuated from villages to the northeast as more than 1,100 firefighters battled the flames.
The highway linking Bursa to the capital, Ankara, was closed as surrounding forests burned.
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BBC News
2 minutes ago
- BBC News
Drought leaves Yorkshire farmers worried for the future
Standing in one of her hay fields on the outskirts of York and looking at the struggling plants around her, farmer Angela Serino says it is a "sorry sight". The drought in Yorkshire has brought further misery to farmers who say they were banking on a high yield this year, after the past two years were a washout. Instead, crops have struggled to grow due to being scorched in the hot and dry conditions. The region has seen the driest start to a year in 96 Angela, who runs Beetle Bank Farm, growing her own hay keeps her many animals fed during the winter, but this year she will need to source and purchase the crop elsewhere. "It should probably be four times taller than this, we're getting ready to cut it now," she sighs. "It's very brown, it should be a lot greener."Angela only takes one harvest a year, either at the end of July or in early August, to allow grey partridges, hares and pheasants to grow up in the hay during spring."We try to produce between 50 and 60 big round bales on about 12 acres of land," she adds."We're not expecting more than about 12 to 15 bales, if that."Droughts have been declared in Yorkshire, the North West and the East and West Midlands this year. Among the animals at Beetle Bank Farm are sheep, llamas, guinea pigs, rabbits, goats, cows and pigs - all of which eat hay. Angela estimates that she goes through about half a round bale of hay each day to keep the animals fed. Although she is used to buying in hay to top up her own supply, she will now need to buy a lot more."It's about to get a lot more expensive I suspect, so we could be in for a rough ride," the farmer says."We're not quite sure how the whole winter is going to pan out yet. "It's quite a sad time because we collect animals as we go and keep hold of our favourite ones and that might not be possible for the future if you never know whether your animals have got anything to eat or not."The recent rain will be too little too late for Beetle Bank and might actually slow down visitor trade, she says."But this is Britain and the weather pleases itself, there's no rhyme or reason to any of it anymore," Angela shrugs. Over in West Yorkshire, Lucy and Chad Stevens are the fifth generation of the family to run the 200-acre cattle and arable farm. Harvesting is already half finished at Horncastle Farm, in Havercroft between Wakefield and Pontefract, but this time last year it had not even started. "This is earlier than I can ever remember and we've been here ten years," Chad year is set to be the earliest harvest since 2006, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, due to hot, dry conditions causing crops to mature faster. "The crops looked better than last year but they're still not great," Chad admits. "They've just not grown and reached the full potential that we wanted, so the yield's not there and the quality's probably not going to be there." The dry weather is also having an impact on the farm's animals."If it is dry, there is no grass, and if there is no grass, there is nothing for them to eat, so you end up with very hungry animals," Lucy says."We're having to supplement their feeds with the winter stores of hay and we're buying in food for them, which is obviously very expensive."Dry conditions are also having an impact on the couple's plans for autumn. "We planted 10,000 pumpkin seeds and you would hope each seed would grow a couple of pumpkins, but I think we'll be getting more like in the hundreds than the thousands," Lucy says."It means potentially we'll be buying them for the pumpkin festival, which after we've paid to plant them, to then buy them in will probably be expensive."However, the farmers try to remain positive in the face of adversity. "We're going to plant the crop again next year even though we've had two bad years, because it's ingrained in us," Chad says. "It's what we do, it's what we want to do, we want to provide that food. "It does frighten me what the climate's doing at the minute and I am worried about what next year's going to bring."But there's one thing for certain, we will keep going and we will do our best." Richard Bramley owns an arable farm between Kelfield and Riccall, near Selby, where he grows potatoes, sugar beet, wheat and barley. "I would say, except for winter barley which was a fairly good yield, just about everything else has been about 25% down on what I would expect," Richard says. "We've got the added problem that the sale prices are particularly poor as well, we're not getting a lot more than we were getting 30 years ago. "It's disappointing, it's off the back of two years that have been affected by wet weather."According to Richard, there are very few ways that farmers can get financial support if they have a poor harvest."We can't control the weather but farmers have got to have the resilience to be able to sow next year's crops and we do that with the money that we've earned from this year's crops," he says. "There comes a point where you start to get into a very difficult situation and you're having to borrow money."He says farmers need a "backstop" to help them if they have a bad make extra cash, farms are diversifying and Richard says he opened a tourism business 20 years ago. "It's a crazy situation when people who are producing food and managing the countryside have to source an income from elsewhere to continue to do that," he adds. Environment Secretary Steve Reed says the government's commitment to farming and food security is "steadfast"."We are slashing costs and red tape for food producers to export to the EU, have appointed former NFU president Baroness Minette Batters to recommend reforms to boost farmers' profits, and we're ensuring farmers get a bigger share of food contracts across our schools, hospitals, and prisons," he adds. Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Europe burns once more as deadly wildfires sweep France and Spain, forcing tourists to evacuate and killing one woman in her home
Europe is battling a new wave of deadly wildfires as dramatic blazes sweep France and Spain, forcing panicking tourists to evacuate and killing one woman in her home. It comes as a scorching heatwave continues to grip Europe with multiple countries recording their hottest temperatures yet as scientists warn of the mounting impact of climate change. The fast-moving wildfire in southern France burned through some 13,000 hectares of land, a swathe as large as Paris, local officials said on Wednesday. The blaze, believed to have been started by a discarded cigarette butt, has destroyed or damaged 25 homes in the Aude department, where 1,500 firefighters have been battling to extinguish it. A woman died in her home and two people were injured, one of whom is now in critical condition with severe burns, according to the Aude prefecture. The blaze marks the biggest in France in a summer which has already seen some 9,000 fires, mainly along its Mediterranean coast. Meanwhile, a dramatic forest fire near a beach resort in southern Spain also forced the evacuation of around 1,500 tourists and locals in a blaze that one official called 'the fastest-spreading fire I've ever seen'. Hundreds of people were said to have bunkered down in a shelter in Algeciras after being evacuated from hotels and homes near the fire in Tarifa, as beach bars and campsites were abandoned in the chaos. Firefighters were still working to extinguish the fire on Wednesday, having battled through the night to control the blaze that required a team of up to 17 aircraft. The woman who died in France was a 65-year-old who lived alone, according to French media, whose house was engulfed by the flames. 'The resident absolutely wanted to stay in her house and unfortunately the fire quickly arrived and engulfed her house,' the mayor of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, Xavier de Volontat, said. 'People are losing everything,' said Aude Damesin, who lives in the town of Fabrezan. 'I find it tragic to see so many fires since the beginning of the summer.' 'The fire is still spreading and is far from being contained or under control,' said Remi Recio, an official in the southern city of Narbonne. The Aude department in particular - a rural and wooded area - has seen an increase in areas burnt in recent years, aggravated by low rainfall and the removal of vineyards, which used to help brake the advance of fires. 'The fire is advancing in an area where all the conditions are ripe for it to progress. We are monitoring the edges and the back of the fire to prevent flare-ups,' said Lucie Roesch, secretary general of the Aude prefecture. The fire broke out Tuesday afternoon in the village of Ribaute. Planes were dropping water on the flames but Roesch warned 'this fire will keep us busy for several days. It's a long-term operation'. A firefighting vehicle drives past houses near an area devastated by a wildfire near Fontjoncouse, southwestern France One person was seriously burned and another injured, the prefecture said, adding that seven firefighters were also hurt. 'All of the Nation's resources are mobilised,' French President Emmanuel Macron said on X, while calling on people to exercise 'the utmost caution'. Camping grounds and one village were partially evacuated, and several local roads have been closed. The fires have spread through a stretch of land roughly equivalent to the size of the French capital between Carcassonne and Narbonne. Four Canadairs, two Dashes and a water bomber helicopter resumed service around 7 am on Wednesday morning to fight the flames, as 100 police officers supported the effort. Meanwhile in Spain, the flames are spreading in the hills of Torre de la Peña, behind the hugely popular resort of Tarifa. According to the Andalucia firefighter service INFOCA, there are gusts of 20-25km/hr that are favouring the fire's spread. The fire is snaking very close to the N-340 highway and the Estrecho Natural Park - the former of which has been partially closed between Las Piñas and Pedro Valiente. All bars, restaurants or hotels have been evacuated between La Peña and Casas de Porros, reports local newspaper Europa Sur. According to the local police, the fire started in a motorhome at the Torre la Peña campsite, which also had to be evacuated. The flames then blew westward, away from the campsite, and spread rapidly through a hilly and grassland area where homes and tourist establishments are scattered - including the Wawa Hotel, which is reported to have been affected by the fire. Several beach bars and 'chiringuitos' have also been evacuated due to the large amounts of ash being carried down to the shore. Some 17 aircraft have been roped in to tackle the inferno, which took hold in Cadiz in Andalusia on Tuesday afternoon. The current firefighting operation involves five helicopters, two water-carrying planes and a coordination plane, five forest fire ground crews and more. Tarifa Mayor Antonio Santos has described the situation as unprecedented. 'This is the fastest-spreading fire I've ever seen,' he said on national channel La Sexta. Tarifa is often branded a 'surfer's paradise' due to its extremely wide beaches and tall waves. Hundreds of the people evacuated from hotels and homes by the fire were said to have spent the night in a hostel in Algeciras, while droves found shelter in a La Marina sports centre in Tarifa as 5,000 fled the area in cars. Fire stations from elsewhere in the province including Chiclana, Benalup and Los Barrios sent troops to assist the effort against the blaze in Tarifa, as attempts are being concentrated on controlling the fire on the north and east flanks. It comes just days after blazes erupted in Portugal, Greece, and Spain, while tornadoes struck tourist hotspots in parts of Spain and Switzerland. Thousands of firefighters battled a dozen wildfires raging in northern Portugal and central Spain into Wednesday, in the largest wave of blazes in the Iberian Peninsula so far this year following weeks of summer heat. The largest wildfire burned in the wooded, mountainous Arouca area - some 300 km (185 miles) north of Lisbon - since Monday, leading to the closure of the scenic trails of Passadicos do Paiva, a popular tourist attraction. Some 800 firefighters and seven waterbombing aircraft tackled the blaze. 'There was a huge effort during the night, so now we have a somewhat calmer situation,' Civil Protection Commander Helder Silva told reporters, cautioning that shifting strong winds and a difficult terrain meant their work was far from over. 'It's a very large wildfire in areas with difficult access,' he said. Further north, a blaze raged from Saturday in the Peneda-Geres national park near the Spanish border, enveloping nearby villages in thick smoke that led to orders for residents to stay at home. Portuguese firefighters managed to control two large fires that started on Monday in the central areas of Penamacor and Nisa. Authorities said the Penamacor blaze had destroyed 3,000 hectares (7,413 acres) of forest. British tourists were put on alert as Greece wildfires spread amid a 44C heatwave in late July, causing homes to go up in flames in the coastal towns of Palaia Fokaia and Thymari 40 km (25 miles) southeast of Athens. Some 145 firefighters, 44 fire engines, ten firefighting planes and seven helicopters were deployed on site as residents of the town of Kryoneri, 12.5miles northeast of Athens, received three SMS warnings to evacuate on July 26.
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Europe's hellfire: France's killer wildfire the size of PARIS continues to rage after tourists in Spain are evacuated and country reports more than 1,000 have died from the heat
France 's deadly wildfire is continuing to tear through the country and cause 'hellish' devastation while tourists are being evacuated in Spain as the country announces one of its highest monthly tallies of heat deaths. The rapidly-growing wildfire, currently burning through an area larger than Paris, in southern France that broke out on Tuesday burned through some 16,000 hectares and remains 'very active' as of Wednesday, according to officials. One woman died in her home and least 13 others were injured, including 11 firefighters, while at least three people were reported missing as about 2,100 firefighters and several water bomber aircraft battled the blaze that broke out in the village of Ribaute in the Aude region, a rural, wooded area that is home to several wineries. 'It's a scene of sadness and desolation,' said Jacques Piraux, mayor of the village of Jonquières, where all residents have been evacuated. 'It looks like a lunar landscape, everything is burned. More than half or three-quarters of the village has burned down.' It is believed to be the nation's worst wildfire since 1949. Meanwhile, 1,500 tourists and locals have been evacuated in Spain as a dramatic forest fire near a beach resort caused chaos in Tarifa, often branded a 'surfer's paradise' due to its extremely wide beaches and tall waves. Regional authorities in Spain said late on Wednesday that a wildfire raging near Tarifa that prompted evacuations had been 'stabilised'. The blaze in France - the biggest the country has seen all summer out of 9,000 fires - has damaged 25 homes in the Aude department, where 1,500 firefighters have been battling to extinguish it. A 65-year-old woman died in her home while nine others were injured, including seven firefighters were hurt as they fought the flames. A De Havilland Dash firefighting aircraft drops fire retardant on a forest fire burning in Saint Laurent de la Cabrerisse, Aude department, France, 6 August 2025 'The resident absolutely wanted to stay in her house and unfortunately the fire quickly arrived and engulfed her house,' said the mayor of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, Xavier de Volontat, about the victim. 'People are losing everything,' said Aude Damesin, who lives in the town of Fabrezan. 'I find it tragic to see so many fires since the beginning of the summer.' 'The fire is still spreading and is far from being contained or under control,' said Remi Recio, an official in the southern city of Narbonne. The Aude department in particular has seen an increase in areas burnt in recent years, aggravated by low rainfall and the removal of vineyards, which used to help brake the advance of fires. 'The fire is advancing in an area where all the conditions are ripe for it to progress. We are monitoring the edges and the back of the fire to prevent flare-ups,' said Lucie Roesch, secretary general of the Aude prefecture. Planes have been dropping water on the flames but Roesch warned 'this fire will keep us busy for several days. It's a long-term operation'. In Spain, hundreds of people were said to have bunkered down in a shelter in Algeciras after being evacuated from hotels and homes near the fire in Tarifa, as beach bars and campsites were abandoned in the chaos. Firefighters were still working to extinguish the fire on Wednesday, having battled through the night to control the blaze that required a team of up to 17 aircraft. The flames began spreading in the hills of Torre de la Peña, behind the hugely popular resort of Tarifa. According to the Andalucia firefighter service INFOCA, there are gusts of 20-25km/hr that are favouring the fire's spread. The fire was snaking very close to the N-340 highway and the Estrecho Natural Park - the former of which has been partially closed between Las Piñas and Pedro Valiente. Tarifa Mayor Antonio Santos has described the situation as unprecedented. 'This is the fastest-spreading fire I've ever seen,' he said on national channel La Sexta. Hundreds of the people evacuated from hotels and homes by the fire were said to have spent the night in a hostel in Algeciras, while droves found shelter in a La Marina sports centre in Tarifa as 5,000 fled the area in cars. Fire stations from elsewhere in the province including Chiclana, Benalup and Los Barrios sent troops to assist the effort against the blaze in Tarifa, as attempts are being concentrated on controlling the fire on the north and east flanks. The heatwave is expected to last until next Sunday, according to Spain's State Meteorological Agency (Aemet). Tourists sit on the beach as the smoke from wildfires raging in the Aude department is seen from the Mediterranean coast in Banyuls-sur-Mer, southwestern France, on August 5 All bars, restaurants or hotels have been evacuated between La Peña and Casas de Porros, reports local newspaper Europa Sur, including beach bars and 'chiringuitos' due to the large amounts of ash being carried down to the shore. According to the local police, the fire started in a motorhome at the Torre la Peña campsite, which also had to be evacuated. The flames then blew westward, away from the campsite, and spread rapidly through a hilly and grassland area where homes and tourist establishments are scattered - including the Wawa Hotel, which is reported to have been affected by the fire. Some 17 aircraft have been roped in to tackle the inferno, which took hold in Cadiz in Andalusia on Tuesday afternoon. The current firefighting operation involves five helicopters, two water-carrying planes and a coordination plane, five forest fire ground crews and more. In the wake of the French fire, French President Emmanuel Macron called on people to exercise the 'utmost caution', saying on X: 'All of the Nation's resources are mobilised.' Camping grounds and one village were partially evacuated, and several local roads have been closed. The fires there spread through a stretch of land roughly equivalent to the size of the French capital between Carcassonne and Narbonne. Four Canadairs, two Dashes and a water bomber helicopter resumed service around 7 am on Wednesday morning to fight the flames, as 100 police officers supported the effort. It comes as the country sees one of its worst months for heat-related deaths, with 1,060 people having died due to high temperatures in July, a 57 per cent increase from figures last year. Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. Southern Europe has seen multiple large fires this summer. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. The two blazes come just days after fires erupted in Portugal, Greece, and Spain, while tornadoes struck tourist hotspots in parts of Spain and Switzerland. Thousands of firefighters battled a dozen wildfires raging in northern Portugal and central Spain into Wednesday, in the largest wave of blazes in the Iberian Peninsula so far this year following weeks of summer heat. The largest wildfire burned in the wooded, mountainous Arouca area - 185 miles north of Lisbon - since Monday, leading to the closure of the scenic trails of Passadicos do Paiva, a popular tourist attraction. Some 800 firefighters and seven waterbombing aircraft tackled the blaze. 'There was a huge effort during the night, so now we have a somewhat calmer situation,' Civil Protection Commander Helder Silva told reporters, cautioning that shifting strong winds and a difficult terrain meant their work was far from over. 'It's a very large wildfire in areas with difficult access,' he said. Further north, a blaze raged from Saturday in the Peneda-Geres national park near the Spanish border, enveloping nearby villages in thick smoke that led to orders for residents to stay at home. Portuguese firefighters managed to control two large fires that started on Monday in the central areas of Penamacor and Nisa. Authorities said the Penamacor blaze had destroyed 3,000 hectares (7,413 acres) of forest. British tourists were put on alert as Greece wildfires spread amid a 44C heatwave in late July, causing homes to go up in flames in the coastal towns of Palaia Fokaia and Thymari 25 miles southeast of Athens. Some 145 firefighters, 44 fire engines, ten firefighting planes and seven helicopters were deployed on site as residents of the town of Kryoneri, 12.5miles northeast of Athens, received three SMS warnings to evacuate on July 26.
