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2026-07-26 04:51 UTC → 2026-07-26 06:03 UTC ·
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France water crisis deepens: drought, fires, A400Mdeployment mass evacuati
During the summer of By late July 2026 France faced a compound France’s summer water emergency. emergency intensified. A €1 billion funding gap forced municipalities to raise water‑service taxes, while a prefectural severe drought alert imposed strict usage limits amid a heatwave. River left river flows fell sharply after 1 July, at historic lows, precipitation was 55 % below normal and the Doubs ran River dry, prompting tanker deliveries forcing municipalities to towns. raise water‑service taxes to cover a €1 billion funding gap. Agricultural runoff closed shut thousands of drinking‑water catchments, leaving only just 44 % of surface waters in good ecological condition. Wildfire activity accelerated, with more than 42 000 ha burned by late the end of July. By 25 July, over 32 700 ha had burned July the blaze in the southwest, destroying Gironde and Landes departments had consumed roughly 32 700 ha, destroyed 140 homes across Gironde, the Landes, Var, Corsica and Hautes‑Alpes, and forcing triggered massive evacuations. An additional 55 000 people were ordered to leave their homes, bringing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands. total displaced population to about 167 000. The aging Canadair fleet was reduced down to nine operational aircraft; to compensate, aircraft, prompting the government converted to convert an Airbus A400M Atlas into a giant water‑bomber. The aircraft dropped 20 000 litres of retardant in On 25 July the A400M performed its first operational run drop, dispensing up to 20 tonnes of retardant foam over Lacanau, creating firebreaks that helped ground crews contain a blaze that had already scorched more than 30 000 ha. the fire. The emergency response mobilised involved roughly 1 400 firefighters, 1 500 military personnel and 1 700 internal‑security forces. security agents. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu ordered the drop and warned that “the next hours can be difficult,” while President Emmanuel Macbon Macron called for national unity as the fires threatened Bordeaux, disrupted the Tour de France and prompted led to the distribution of millions of face masks. Critics pointed continued to point to maintenance shortfalls in the Canadair fleet, but the A400M added a decisive boost to France’s firefighting capability.