Heatwave: More evacuations as Mediterranean wildres spread By Laurence Peter BBC News European countries are experiencing heatwave that is causing the spread of life-threatening wildres. To date, France has evacuated more than 16,000 people threatened by wildres in the south-west, as res also spread in Spain, Croatia, and Greece. Authorities in France's Gironde, a popular tourist region, have evacuated guards from campsites - the tourists left earlier. Fires have spread in the Teste-de-Buch and mm areas. In southern Spain, more than 3,200 people ed res in the Mjas hills, though later some were able to return. Portugal's res are contained for now, but the battle is not over. In Italy, the government has declared a state of emergency in the desiccated P0 Valley - the country's longest river is no more than a trickle in some places. Since then, more than 1,000 deaths have been attributed to the heat in Portugal and Spain in recent days. The Mijas res in Spain are not far from Maa, a popular tourist area. Elsewhere in Spain, wildres have broken out in the provinces of Castilla y Leon, Qalicia and Extremadura. Ellen McCurdy, living in the m area, told Reuters: "We just grabbed a few essentials and just ran really, and by that stage everybody along the street was on the move... there were a lot of ambulances and re engines." Across the Mediterranean from Morocco in the west to Crete in the east - thousands of reghters and many waterbombing aircraft have been deployed. Since Tuesday, the whole region has been sweltering in severe heat, leaving vegetation bone dry. Heatwaves have become more frequent, more intense, and last longer because of West climate change. The world has already warmed by about 1. IC since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make stee cuts to carbon emissions. The French weather service has forecast gem gm of up to 41C (106F) in the country's sou - on Sunday and new heat records are predicted for Monday. In Portugal, the temperature recently reached 42C. In the UK there is a red warning for extreme heat across parts of England, as the country braces for record temperatures on Monday and Tuesday, possibly reaching 41 C in some parts. UK may have hottest day on record with 41*: forecast. Dr Eunice Lo, a climate scientist at Bristol University, told the BBC that "rising temperatures are a signature of climate change" and that in the UK, 2,000 extra deaths a year were attributable to heatwaves. Public records show that since 1884, the top 10 hottest years in the UK have all been since 2002, she said. Globally, "heatwaves are becoming more common and lasting longer," Dr Lo added. "We need to stop burning fossil fuels, and act now and quickly." Meanwhile, climbers in the Alps are being urged to postpone their trips to Mont Blanc due to the risk of rock falls caused by 1"'exceptional climatic conditions". Heatwaves put the public at greater risk of heatstroke, heat exhaustion and drowning, as people rush to cool o, Dr Lo said. Pets and farm animals are also vulnerable. I\"Even t and healthy people are at risk," she said, though the most vulnerable are young children, the elderly and those with underlying health conditions. Extreme heat can also damage infrastructure, such as melting road tarmac and buckling railway lines. Extracted 'om: ht;s:ffwwwbbccomfncwsfworld-curo ellr