Southern Europe has descended into flames as devastating wildfires have continued to ravage France and Spain.

The raging infernos have resulted in a 22-year-old firefighter in France losing his life while battling the flames, while villas in the Costa del Sol have been urgently evacuated.

Brits have been warned by the Foreign Office that there is a ‘high risk’ travelling to France, while Europe is set to bake once again with temperatures forecast to hit 40C in areas.

The European Commission has pre-positioned a record 777 firefighters from 14 European countries in high-risk areas across Cyprus, Greece, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal, in preparation for expected further wildfires. 

Scorching heatwaves across western Europe have parched vast areas of land in May and June, making them particularly vulnerable to wildfires this year.

It was one such wildfire in the Savoie region in the Alps which claimed the life of the young firefighter.  

‘It was with deep sadness that I learnt this morning of the death of a young volunteer firefighter from SDIS 73, aged 22, who died whilst on duty after spending part of the night fighting a forest fire in Savoie,’ Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on X.   

The Trevillach wildfire in France’s Pyrenees-Orientales has already burned 4,900 hectares and has reportedly forced 10,000 people out of their homes.

Devastating wildfires in the Drôme region of France (pictured) has reportedly continued to spread and now covers more than 2,000 hectares

Residents have been forced to evacuate from their homes in Spain following several heatwaves which would have dried extensive areas in Europe

A house in the Pyranees was gutted in the flames yesterday in a region that is believed to have seen 10,000 people evacuated from their homes due to the fires

It did not advance overnight, the local prefect said on X, allowing residents of a dozen villages to return home. The blaze, however, is not fully contained.  

Another fire in the Drôme region has reportedly continued to spread and now covers more than 2,000 hectares, with two campsites evacuated last night.

Volunteer firefighters have been called on and further reinforcements were set to arrive overnight, including a group of sailor-firefighters from Marseille.

An urgent appeal has been launched for temporary accommodation for those whose homes have been affected by the fires. 

The wildfires in France, which have burned twice as much land as this time last year, prompted the Foreign Office to deem the country ‘high risk’ for Brits over the coming months and directed travellers to their existing advice on their website.

‘There is a high risk of wildfires during the summer season from April to October. For advice, visit the wildfires section on the Safety and security page,’ the Foreign Office wrote.

Wildfires in the Barbate area in Andalusia, southern Spain, also caused residents to be evacuated from their villas while around 50 firefighters battled the blaze.

As raging walls of flames continued to spread through the region, ten aircrafts – which were made up of a heavy helicopter, a command helicopter, two medium helicopters, four light amphibious firefighting planes as well as a coordination aircraft – were also deployed to try and stop the advancing fire.

A helicopter was seen dropping water on the wildfires in Spain

Moments earlier, it was seen collecting water from a nearby pool

Residents and holidaymakers have had to be evacuated from their homes due to the flames and some authorities are looking for temporary accommodation for those affected

The Spanish Eye reported that these evacuations in the Veteranos and Ribera de la Oliva areas were precautionary, while residents in the nearby area were also forced to flee.

The fire was said to have started in the Los Visos area, near to La Brena Natural Park. 

Footage shared yesterday showed tourists being rushed from hotels and villas as enormous plumes of grey smoke emerged from behind a swimming pool in Grazalema, Cádiz, where the Hotel Fuerte and several homes have been evacuated.

The fire originated at El Alamillo in the Sierra de Grazalema mountain area, where helicopters, planes, water trucks, heavy machinery, and a medical unit have been deployed to try to stop the advance of the flames.

Wildfires have raged across southern Europe since last week and in France have forced thousands to leave their homes. 

Earlier this week, it was reported by the BBC that 10,000 people were evacuated from the French Pyrenees while spectators for the Tour de France were told to stay away from the route so that emergency vehicles could easily access the region.

Portugal and France have also activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism over the weekend due to wildfires burning simultaneously and scorching thousands of hectares. 

The EU announced on Monday it was sending ⁠four waterbombing aircraft to France from Cyprus and Sweden to help firefighters around the city of Perpignan.

‘Europe stands with France,’ the European Commission president, Ursula ⁠von der Leyen, posted.

Spain’s AEMET weather agency on Tuesday declared a top level red heat alert in three eastern regions and predicted that temperatures would rise above 40C.

The Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia regions are predicted to be among the worst hit in a new heatwave that is hitting southern Europe this week, which is set to last until at least Thursday.