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Massive wildfires engulf northern suburb of Athens as Greece reels through horrors of climate change
Firefighting teams respond from the air and on the ground to a fire in Krioneri near Athens, Greece. AFP
A massive wildfire burned through a northern suburb of Athens, Greece, on Saturday, prompting authorities to order an evacuation. Residents of the town of Kryoneri, 12.5 miles (20km) north-east of Athens, received three SMS alerts to evacuate to safe areas, fire service spokesperson Vassilis Vathrakoyannis told reporters, The Associated Press reported.
Greek media have shown videos of houses on fire as the authorities struggle to control the blaze. 'There have been reports of damage. We will take stock when the fires have been put out," Vathrakoyannis said at the presser. 'The real difficulties are ahead of us,' he said, adding that Greece has asked for six firefighting planes from the European Union's civil protection mechanism.
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According to The Associated Press, around 145 firefighters, 44 fire engines, 10 firefighting planes and 7 helicopters were being used to put out the fire, whose origin is still unknown. Meanwhile, four ambulances were treating at least five residents, most of them elderly with respiratory problems.
High temperatures are making the fire uncontrollable
Temperatures reaching or exceeding 38 °C, dry conditions, and high winds are fanning the flames. While speaking to the reporters, Vathrakoyannis said that under such conditions, wildfires 'expand very quickly and become dangerous. These conditions are expected to prevail over the coming days.'
Apart from this, the Greek fire service is also dealing with three other major fires in the south-west of Greece's two largest islands – Crete in the south and Evia north of Athens and also on the island of Kythera, north-west of Crete. At least 335 firefighters, 19 planes and 13 helicopters are involved in the operations across the country.
Vathrakoyannis emphasised that in total, 52 wildfires broke out across the country over the past 24 hours. Destructive wildfires have become a common occurrence in Greece in recent years. Many of them have broken out in the past month.
Meanwhile, fire also hit across the south of France late on Saturday, spreading towards a beach resort and forcing the evacuation of two campgrounds and some local housing. Driven by strong winds, the fire in the Aude region on the Mediterranean coast near the Spanish border had already burned through 600 hectares (1,500 acres) after breaking out earlier in the afternoon.
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The fire comes less than a month after the Aude region was hit by a major blaze that swept through 2,100 hectares (5,200 acres) near Narbonne, mobilising 1,000 firefighters.
With inputs from The Associated Press.
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