Cooler weather and potential rain move into the French region torched by wildfires

Cooler weather and potential rain move into the French region torched by wildfires 1 of 8 | French firefighters were still battling a wildfire four times the size of Paris cutting through forests west of Bordeaux on Wednesday. (AP video by Alexander Turnbull) 2 of 8 | Two firefighters have died in a wildfire that broke out Wednesday on the southern Greek island of Crete, the fire department said. The two were among more than 150 firefighters battling a wildfire in the region of Rethymno in Crete that broke out Wednesday afternoon. (AP video: Giannis Anglakis) 3 of 8 | From his vineyards in Bordeaux wine country, Edouard Le Grix de la Salle can sometimes smell the burning forests far away. The smoke brings a whiff of hardship for the region’s economic fortunes. (AP video by Eva Van Dam and production by Jeff Schaeffer) 4 of 8 | A smoke cloud rises as firefighters work to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) 5 of 8 | A firefighter lays on the ground after working to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) 6 of 8 | A fire burns in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) 7 of 8 | Embers smolder inside an olive tree during a wildfire in the Rethymno region on the southern Greek island of Crete, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, where two firefighters died while battling the blaze. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis) 8 of 8 | Flames burn an olive tree during a wildfire in the Rethymno region on the southern Greek island of Crete, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, where two firefighters died while battling the blaze. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis) 1 of 8 French firefighters were still battling a wildfire four times the size of Paris cutting through forests west of Bordeaux on Wednesday. (AP video by Alexander Turnbull) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 2 of 8 Two firefighters have died in a wildfire that broke out Wednesday on the southern Greek island of Crete, the fire department said. The two were among more than 150 firefighters battling a wildfire in the region of Rethymno in Crete that broke out Wednesday afternoon. (AP video: Giannis Anglakis) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 3 of 8 From his vineyards in Bordeaux wine country, Edouard Le Grix de la Salle can sometimes smell the burning forests far away. The smoke brings a whiff of hardship for the region’s economic fortunes. (AP video by Eva Van Dam and production by Jeff Schaeffer) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 4 of 8 | A smoke cloud rises as firefighters work to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) 4 of 8 A smoke cloud rises as firefighters work to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 5 of 8 | A firefighter lays on the ground after working to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) 5 of 8 A firefighter lays on the ground after working to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 6 of 8 | A fire burns in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) 6 of 8 A fire burns in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 7 of 8 | Embers smolder inside an olive tree during a wildfire in the Rethymno region on the southern Greek island of Crete, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, where two firefighters died while battling the blaze. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis) 7 of 8 Embers smolder inside an olive tree during a wildfire in the Rethymno region on the southern Greek island of Crete, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, where two firefighters died while battling the blaze. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 8 of 8 | Flames burn an olive tree during a wildfire in the Rethymno region on the southern Greek island of Crete, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, where two firefighters died while battling the blaze. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis) 8 of 8 Flames burn an olive tree during a wildfire in the Rethymno region on the southern Greek island of Crete, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, where two firefighters died while battling the blaze. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] LEGE-CAP FERRET, France (AP) — Higher humidity, cooler temperatures and a forecast for rain raised hopes of relief Thursday for a parched portion of southwestern France engulfed by wildfires that have charred an area four times the size of Paris in recent weeks.With moisture moving in from the Atlantic coast, national weather service Meteo France forecast light rain in the town of Lege-Cap Ferret, on a peninsula that’s been a leading edge of the devastated region.Local officials reported a “rather calm” night, with a fire that has not grown beyond the 42,000 hectares (about 162 sq. miles) already affected. Fire crews remained at “total mobilization” with 2,200 firefighters and over 20 aircraft.Rain fell early Thursday in the city of Bordeaux to the east. But there were no early signs of enough rainfall in the hardest-hit areas that could douse the flames or dampen the sandy ground and brushy undergrowth of pine forests that have fueled the inferno. Sophie Brocas, the prefect for the Gironde region, expressed some optimism that lower temperatures could help. “If that’s confirmed, we could foresee a return to a more normal life for residents, but also for businesses that need to work,” she told reporters late Wednesday.Humidity reached 80% overnight but was expected to drop by midday, authorities said. Some rainfall was expected along the coast that “could reach the fire zone,” Gironde officials said in a morning note. 1 MIN READ 3 MIN READ Temperatures that peaked around 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) a day earlier were set to drop Thursday, topping out at 27 C (80 F) along the coast. An “orange” heat wave alert — the second-highest level after “red” — was lifted shortly before dawn. The fires in the Bordeaux wine-growing, forested and tourism-heavy region are among the blazes that have swept across pockets of southern Europe in recent weeks, including Spain and Greece. On Thursday, firefighters were tackling multiple forest fires in four of Turkey’s western provinces, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported. Blazes in touristic Mugla and Antalya and elsewhere raged overnight as hot weather and strong winds gripped the region. Residents were evacuated as teams with firefighting planes and helicopters battled the fires.A day earlier, authorities in neighboring Greece said three firefighters had died on the island on Crete, as the wildfire emergency stretched from the Atlantic coast to the eastern Mediterranean. At the peak of the evacuations, a third of a million people were driven from homes and vacation sites in France and Spain.