Fires in Spain and France, hail in Balkans; Europe's erratic weather persists

F irefighters struggled on Tuesday to contain Spain's largest wildfire of the year, while two firefighters were killed battling a fire in southwestern France, as an extreme heatwave continued to fuel dangerous conditions across Europe, bringing drought and forecasts of severe hailstorms.



The fatalities occurred near an airport in the Gironde region, which was on high alert for wildfires, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said, two weeks after the death of another firefighter in the Savoie region in the French Alps.



A separate wildfire in the Var department in southern France burned 500 hectares within hours and continued to spread in the direction of the nearby commune of Cotignac, local authorities said on Tuesday.



France's Wildfire Prevention and Reporting Association (PSFDF) marked the fire as "out of control". At least 150 people have been evacuated.



In Spain's central Guadalajara province, a forest blaze raged uncontrolled for a sixth day, forcing the evacuation of more than 1,200 people.