Wildfires put pressure on the Cap Ferret peninsula and Biscarrosse

Lège-Cap-Ferret – July 24, 2026: The summer morning on the Cap Ferret peninsula began not with beachgoer traffic but with evacuation orders. Following a major forest fire near Sauternes, the Gironde prefecture ordered overnight evacuations of all settlements on the tourist-heavy peninsula. According to authorities, the fire crossed previously established firebreaks.

Between Sauternes, Le Porge and Lège-Cap-Ferret, around 800 firefighters are battling the flames. Since Wednesday, July 22, more than 10,000 hectares of pine forest are believed to have burned. As a precaution, around 20,000 people were moved to safety. According to Le Monde, six homes were destroyed. Roads remained closed to regular traffic as emergency vehicles moved between danger zones.

Marc Vermeulen, the on-site commander of the Gironde Fire and Rescue Service, explained that the situation is extremely unpredictable. The fire can sometimes remain nearly stationary, but can suddenly gain momentum due to intense heat and air currents generated by the fire itself. Dry vegetation, temperatures above 30 degrees and shifting winds are making firefighters’ work difficult. The top priority is protecting homes and safely evacuating affected settlements.

For many tourists and residents, evacuation meant packing only the bare essentials and enduring uncertainty. In Le Porge, people were accommodated in a sports hall while awaiting further instructions. During the summer, the region relies on campsites, holiday homes, and access to forests and the Atlantic Ocean. The closure of the peninsula therefore affects not only individual villages, but an entire holiday region.

As the tense situation in Gironde continued, another major fire broke out on Thursday night near Biscarrosse in the neighboring Landes department. At noon on Friday, the prefecture announced that, in addition to homes, campsites, care facilities and holiday camps were also subject to evacuation. Evacuations in central Biscarrosse were still underway. Authorities urged residents to follow instructions strictly and stay away from operational areas.

According to Le Monde, the Biscarrosse fire had already spread over more than 2,500 hectares by Friday, and more than 23,000 people had to leave their accommodation or homes overnight as a precaution. Aircraft were redeployed between the two fire sites. France also requested European assistance through the rescEU disaster response mechanism, including firefighting aircraft and helicopters from several partner countries.

As of Friday, authorities had not reached a final conclusion regarding the causes of the two fires. For the on-site command, the immediate priorities are containing the spread and keeping people away from danger zones. Only once the fires are continuously under control will it become clear what damage remains to the forests, homes and tourism infrastructure of the Landes de Gascogne.