Greece battles wildfires, including near Athens
Firefighters were battling blazes in over 70 locations across Greece. Strong winds continue to fan the flames, adding to the firefighters' struggles.
A severe wildfire has been raging near the coastal village of Agios Vasileios in Greece, despite a team of over 300 firefighters working tirelessly to contain it. The fire, which has reached the sea, has caused significant damage to homes in the area of Porto Germeno, approximately 70 kilometres northwest of Athens. Strong winds, reaching speeds of up to 130 kilometers per hour, have made firefighting efforts even more challenging for aircraft attempting to combat the blaze.
The environmental impact is enormous, with wildfires affecting more than 70 locations across Greece this week. The Greek fire brigade has declared the fire risk particularly high in the Attica peninsula and Evia, an island to the east of Athens. Wildfires have also been reported on Crete, causing extensive damage to 5,000 hectares of land.
Tragically, three firefighters have lost their lives in the line of duty. European countries are grappling with devastating wildfires during a scorching summer, exacerbated by extreme heatwaves and minimal rainfall.
Written by urgent.news from DW News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
- Weather Whiplash Helped Fuel the Wildfires in France and Spain e360.yale.edu
- Wildfires in Europe: blazes continue to spread in France and Greece euronews.com
- Firefighters tackle wildfires in several areas in Greece rte.ie
- Wildfire danger in Europe shifts to Greece as evacuation orders remain in France cbsnews.com
- Greece battles raging wildfires as flames appear to ease in France aljazeera.com
- Here’s what supercharged the monster wildfires in Spain and France grist.org
