Wildfires Rage, Thousands Evacuate
Reality Star Georgia Toffolo Flees Devastating Wildfires Forcing Thousands From French Coast
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Key Points
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Cap Ferret sustained extensive damage with thousands of hectares burned and villas destroyed, illustrating the wildfire’s severity beyond evacuations.
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Toffolo said she avoids sharing travel locations on social media when she has her children with her, citing safety concerns about posting where they are.
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Spain’s Madrid region faced a national emergency as three wildfires merged west of the capital, with about 25,000 people evacuated and nearly 40,000 told to stay indoors.
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Toffolo and Watt had been in Cap Ferret for a week, were at lunch with friends on Thursday, and were due to depart on Friday before evacuations intensified.
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Experts warned that wind changes can rapidly alter wildfire behavior, a factor Toffolo highlighted as making the situation escalate quickly.
Former Made in Chelsea star Georgia Toffolo and her husband, BrewDog co-founder James Watt, narrowly escaped a devastating wildfire on France's Cap Ferret peninsula — fleeing by boat just hours before mass evacuations forced over 40,000 people from the area, according to Mirror and Daily Mail. The blaze, which Toffolo described as "apocalyptic," rapidly spread across southwest France and into Spain, ultimately displacing more than 250,000 people across the Gironde and Landes regions.
A tearful Toffolo, speaking from Iceland where the couple eventually landed, said the situation escalated with terrifying speed. She and Watt had been in Cap Ferret for a week and were due to fly home on Friday. Instead, they spent a night at the airport, too frightened to leave, according to Metro.
How Toffolo and Watt Escaped by Boat
The couple was at lunch with friends on Thursday when conditions began to change fast. Toffolo said they noticed road closures and smelled ash in the air — warning signs that something was very wrong. They made the decision to leave immediately, boarding a boat and getting out before roads became impassable, according to Daily Mail.
Toffolo said she and Watt had planned to fly out on Friday, but they could not wait. After escaping by water, the couple spent the following night sheltering at the airport out of fear. She later described the ordeal as deeply distressing, and said wind changes had made the fire spread far faster than anyone expected, according to Mirror.
Cap Ferret Wildfire Burns Thousands of Hectares
The fire that hit Cap Ferret was not a small blaze. Thousands of hectares burned across the luxury coastal peninsula, and multiple villas were destroyed. The scale of the damage placed it among the most destructive wildfires to hit southwest France in recent years, according to Head Topics.
Evacuations in the Gironde and Landes regions eventually surpassed 200,000 people as the fire spread beyond Cap Ferret. Firefighters battled to contain the blaze while emergency services worked to clear residents and tourists from the path of the flames, according to Metro.
Spain Declares National Emergency as Fires Merge Near Madrid
The wildfire crisis was not limited to France. In Spain, three separate fires merged west of Madrid, forcing authorities to declare a national emergency. Around 25,000 people were evacuated from affected areas, and nearly 40,000 more were ordered to stay indoors, according to Metro.
The combined disaster pushed the total number of displaced people across southwest France and central Spain past 250,000. Experts warned that shifting winds were a key factor in both countries, causing fires to change direction rapidly and outpace evacuation efforts, according to Head Topics UK.
Toffolo's Safety Rule: No Location Posts With Her Children
Amid the chaos, Toffolo addressed a question many followers had — why she had not shared her location on social media during the trip. She said she never posts where she is when she has her children with her, citing safety concerns. It was a rare personal detail she shared while speaking publicly about the wildfire ordeal, according to Mirror.
Toffolo and Watt are now safe in Iceland. The experience left her shaken, and she spoke about how quickly the situation moved from a relaxed family holiday to a frightening emergency. Her account put a human face on a disaster that uprooted more than a quarter of a million people across two countries.
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