AFP News
Greece battles forest fires in strong winds
Greece battled several forest fires on Sunday. Smoke enveloped parts of the capital Athens in a cloud of haze. Extreme weather conditions were forecast for the rest of the week. By Sunday afternoon, firefighters had extinguished 33 of the 40 fires that had broken out in the past 24 hours, fire service spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis told the press at an emergency briefing. However, the force still had to fight seven more fires in the summer Mediterranean heat. The Minister for Civil Protection had warned a day earlier that half of the country was at high risk of fire due to high temperatures, gusts of wind and drought. In the East Attica region, an uncontrolled fire in the Varnavas area spread to a pine-forested area with isolated houses, emitting so much smoke that Athens glowed red at times on Sunday afternoon. – Flames 25 metres high – A force of 250 firefighters, supported by 67 vehicles, 12 firefighting planes and seven helicopters, was sent to battle the flames, which “in many cases reached a height of over 25 metres,” Vathrakogiannis said. As the fire threatened residential homes, the Greek army was on hand to help in their efforts, he added. In the nearby village of Metohi, which was not yet threatened, Eugenia told AFP she was afraid of what might happen during the night. “Every year we have to flee our homes,” she said from the saddle of her motorbike, having just checked on her cats. Another fire that broke out early Sunday afternoon in Megara in western Attica, prompting an evacuation alert, was partially contained after destroying at least three houses and cars. 48 firefighters with 13 vehicles and additional volunteers worked on the scene and provided aerial support. In Thessaloniki, a fire in the Lagadas area was partially brought under control. 20 firefighters, 10 vehicles and a helicopter were on site. – “Extremely high temperatures” – Maximum temperatures of 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) are expected in Greece on Monday. The highest temperatures are expected in the west of the country. Kostas Lagouvardos, head of research at the National Observatory of Athens, said on Sunday that given the current weather conditions, the flames could quickly get out of control if the fires were not responded to quickly enough. With wind speeds of 80 to 90 kilometers per hour expected in some areas, Lagouvardos told ERT News that Sunday was expected to be the most difficult day for firefighting. The Mediterranean country is particularly prone to fires in summer, when fires are a daily occurrence. After the warmest winter on record, Greece also experienced the hottest months in June and July since reliable data began in 1960. The earliest heatwave was recorded in June. Scientists warn that human-caused fossil fuel emissions are worsening the length, frequency and intensity of heatwaves around the world. The rising temperatures are leading to longer periods of wildfires and increasing the area burned, according to the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. amj-kan/sbk/imm
