France Had Never Seen a ‘Fire Cloud’ Until This Month’s Record-Smashing Blazes

Record wildfires in France and Spain have burned vast areas and forced mass evacuations.

In France, the fires produced pyrocumulonimbus “fire clouds” — a phenomenon never before documented there.

The blaze-driven weather shows how extreme heat and dry conditions can make wildfires more intense and harder to control.

The events underscore rising wildfire risk in a warming climate, according to European fire data and firefighters.