Fontainebleau forest fires prompt evacuations and snarl transport
Fires southeast of Paris burned more than 800 hectares as heat and wind complicated firefighting across the Fontainebleau area.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
2 min read
Wildfires in the Fontainebleau forest southeast of Paris forced evacuations, disrupted rail service and shut part of a major motorway, AFP and Reuters reported. The fires have put pressure on emergency crews as a heatwave raises fire danger across the Paris region and wider Western Europe.
The fires started near a motorway outside Fontainebleau, a town about 60km, or 42 miles, southeast of Paris that is known for one of France’s major royal palaces, according to AFP and Reuters. By Monday morning, the flames had burned more than 800 hectares, or 1,980 acres, after being pushed by hot winds.
Authorities partially closed the A6 motorway, which links northern and southern France, and train lines in the area were disrupted, AFP and Reuters reported. In Vaudoue, a nearby village, 15 homes were evacuated.
About 400 firefighters were sent to fight the fires across several towns, according to officials cited by AFP and Reuters. Authorities also deployed two waterbombing planes on Monday as crews worked to contain the flames.
Officials described the fires as “very virulent” and of “exceptional scale,” AFP and Reuters reported. The wording reflected the unusual intensity of the incident in a region better known for forest tourism and commuter routes than for major summer fire operations.
Aircraft sent from southern France
Eric Brocardi, of France’s national federation of firemen, said fire-bombing aircraft had been sent from the hotter, drier south of France to the Paris region for the first time to put out fires there, according to AFP and Reuters.
Brocardi said two firefighting helicopters and an observation aircraft were also dispatched to help contain the blaze. Their deployment added to the ground operation already under way across the Fontainebleau area.
The Paris region is under a heatwave, AFP and Reuters reported, and officials have warned that the conditions increase the risk of fire. The World Weather Attribution group has said recent heatwaves would have been “virtually impossible” without climate change.
The heat has also affected France’s energy system. AFP and Reuters reported that officials have shut down three nuclear power stations during the ongoing hot spell.
Fire season already ahead of last year
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said forest fires have burned 17,000 hectares, or 42,008 acres, in France so far this year, AFP and Reuters reported. He said that was twice the amount recorded by the same point in 2025.
The Fontainebleau fires add to a broader summer of heat-related disruption in France and across Western Europe. Authorities continued using aircraft and hundreds of firefighters on Monday as they tried to bring the fires under control near communities, rail lines and the A6 corridor.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.