France requests help from EU to deal with fires, says Macron

"The situation remains extremely tense with the fires hitting our country, particularly in Gironde," Macron writes on X

A firefighter works to extinguish flames during a wildfire in Lege-Cap-Ferret in the Gironde department amid worsening drought conditions following a heatwave and water shortages across much of France, Jul 23, 2026. REUTERS

France has requested assistance from the European Union to help it deal with a major wildfire near the country's Atlantic coast, said President Emmanuel Macron on Friday.

"The situation remains extremely tense with the fires hitting our country, particularly in Gironde," wrote Macron on X.

"France has requested the activation of the European Union's civil protection mechanism. We will soon be able to count on reinforcements from two Croatian Canadair aircraft, two Portuguese Air Tractor planes, as well as two heavy Black Hawk helicopters from the Czech Republic and Slovakia," he added.

More than 10,000 people were evacuated overnight in southwestern France as a rapidly spreading wildfire ripped through at least 2,400 hectares of land west of the city of Bordeaux, officials said on Thursday.