LÈGE-CAP-FERRET, France (AFP) — Europe’s wildfire crisis forced more than 80,000 people to flee for safety Friday, as holidaymakers boarded boats to escape fires on one French peninsula and Spanish officials ordered mass evacuations in towns near Madrid.

Both Spain and France called for European Union help as flames whipped up by strong winds and boosted by drought raced through tinder-dry forests.

France ordered the evacuation of 40,000 people on the upscale Cap Ferret peninsula south of Bordeaux.

As 27 boats brought hundreds of people away from the fires, those with cars took the only usable road off the peninsula, known for its millionaire residences.

Another 23,000 people have been ordered out of homes and campsites further south in the Landes region.

In Spain, more than 19,000 people have been evacuated or told to stay in their homes in towns in the Madrid region.

Two of the three major wildfires west of the city had merged into one, threatening one suburban town, said officials.

“We are living through a dramatic situation, not only in various Spanish provinces but also in regions of neighbouring countries,” said Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, as smoke from the out-of-control fires drifted over the Spanish capital.

Some European regions have suffered at least two heatwaves since May.

And drought blamed on human-fueled climate change has heightened the threat from wildfires this year, the World Weather Attribution group said in a study published this week.

Three firefighters have been killed in France and Italy this week battling wildfires.

French authorities stepped up evacuations as they struggled with the advancing flames on Cap Ferret. Regional fire chief, Marc Vermeulen, said that for several hours the flames were devouring between 800 and 1,000 hectares (2,000-2,500 acres) of forest an hour.

More than 50 houses have been destroyed and dozens damaged, say French officials. Many people who fled were left wondering what they would find on their return.

Emergency centres were set up in schools and gymnasiums for tourists and residents.

In the village of Andernos, Maria Lalanne, a 90-year-old from Lege Cap Ferret, sat on a camp bed in a gym having left behind her glasses and her hearing aid.

“I have heart disease, high blood pressure and problems with my eyes,” she said. “I don’t know how long all this will last. I don’t know how my house is, whether it has burned.”

Firefighting reinforcements have been sent from across France and 1,000 firefighters, gendarmes and specialist troops were battling the flames.

Following appeals for assistance, the European Commission said it was sending four water-bombing planes to Spain and three to France.

The fires burning around Madrid were the worst in the region’s history, regional president Isabel Diaz Ayuso said as she announced the mass evacuations.

More than 430 elderly and disabled were moved from five care homes. Guardia Civil police wearing face masks helped elderly residents in wheelchairs board buses as the homes were evacuated.

Two fires west of Madrid had merged and were heading for the town of Navas del Rey, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) from the capital.

“The smoke was incredibly thick,” Jose Cobos, who fled his home southwest of Madrid with his wife and three dogs, told Antena 3 television as he waited to learn if his house was still standing. “You couldn’t breathe.”

Spain has been hit by a series of wildfires in recent weeks.

The largest active fire is still burning in Guadalajara province, around 100 km north of Madrid, where it has scorched about 32,000 hectares (80,000 acres) over the past week.

The French fires at Cap Ferret and around the town of Biscarosse in the Landes have already burned more than 13,500 hectares while another 6,000 hectares has been lost in the Madrid region.

Italy has also been battling wildfires this week with dozens raging on the island of Sicily in recent days. One of the firefighters victim was killed in Sicily. Two others died tackling a fire near Bordeaux airport.