The Japan Times - France firefighters hopeful, as Spain reports 'almost no flames'

Europe has been gripped by successive heatwaves and a major drought this year, which scientists have attributed to human-caused climate change.

The neighbouring countries have been gripped by some of the worst forest fires in living memory over the past week, burning vast areas and forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes.

In France, a little rain fell on Thursday near the wine capital of Bordeaux, raising hopes that an end to the fire in a seaside pine forest was near as authorities allowed some of the 220,000 displaced to return home.

A clap of thunder cracked over the town of Lege-Cap-Ferret, and a few raindrops started to fall over the coastal region that has seen France's worst wildfire since 1949.

"There's thunder, that's good," said a firefighter at the command post set up in the town's sports hall.

The regional firefighting service said they were "reasonably optimistic", after the fire that broke out a week ago had not progressed beyond 42,000 hectares -- an area larger than the US city of Detroit -- since the weekend.

The fire has destroyed 240 homes.

Regional firefighting chief Marc Vermeulen warned his teams would still have to spend several days dousing water on remaining flames inside the forest as well as at its edges to avoid it picking up again.

But local authorities said they were allowing people to return home in nine villages and planned to reopen a highway heading southwards out of Bordeaux in the afternoon.

- New Spanish fire -

In Spain, wildfires threatening areas near Madrid had stopped expanding with "almost no flames left", the prefect's office said.

Just outside the town of San Martin de Valdeiglesias, a firefighting station was surrounded by scorched land, an AFP reporter said.

The white station building was untouched as was a red firefighting truck and small helicopter parked in front of the building.

The blaze west of Madrid has burnt 27,000 hectares and destroyed at least 100 homes since last week, according to a local official.

By Thursday morning, only a thousand evacuees remained in the region, after thousands returned home on Wednesday.

But a new fire broke out on Wednesday in Fermoselle, western Spain, just a few kilometres from the Portuguese border, forcing the evacuation of more than 600 people, emergency services said.

Another fire, that has been raging since last week slightly further west in Avila, is the largest Spain has experienced since records began in 1961, with around 50,000 hectares burnt.

- 'We'll sell the house' -

The repeated heatwaves and wildfires have jolted the public into reflection on the reality of climate change.

In Bordeaux, Uber driver Kevin Montmartre -- who was forced to evacuate from the flames three times since the blaze began -- said that the increased frequency of wildfires was making him reconsider his home in the beach town of Andernos-les-Bains.

"Honestly, I've talked it over with my wife, and if there's another one in the coming years, we'll sell the house," he told AFP at the wheel of his Tesla as the rain began to fall in Bordeaux.

Elsewhere in Europe, thousands of people were evacuated late on Wednesday as fires threatened a tourist resort on the Greek island of Crete and continued to rage on Thursday, fanned by violent winds, authorities said.

The fire is believed to have burnt down homes, agricultural facilities and farm animals, but the toll is unclear as the fire is ongoing, local official Maria Lioni said.

Turkey was also battling at least 115 fires across the country, although at least 110 were under control, according to the country's agriculture minister.

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H.Takahashi--JT