ATHENS, Greece — More than 600 firefighters, including reinforcements from several European countries and backed by a fleet of water-dropping planes and helicopters, were battling the remains of three major wildfires in Greece on Sunday, two of which have been raging for days.
Greece has been plagued by daily outbreaks of dozens of fires for the past week as hurricane-force winds and hot, dry summer conditions combined to fan the flames and hamper suppression efforts.
Across the country, firefighters were battling 105 wildfires on Sunday, of which 46 broke out in the 24 hours between Saturday night and Sunday night, the fire department said.
The authorities are investigating the causes of the fires, and it is suspected that some of them were provoked.
In the Evros and Alexandroupolis regions of northeastern Greece, a massive wildfire believed to have caused 20 of the 21 wildfire-related deaths last week was burning for a ninth day.
The blaze, where smaller fires combined to form one of the largest wildfires to ever hit a European Union country, has decimated vast tracts of forest and burned houses in outlying areas of the city of Alexandroupolis.
People watching a forest fire near the village of Sykorrahi in Greece on August 23, 2023. AP Photo/Achilleas Chiras
A house destroyed by fire in northwest Athens on August 27, 2023. AP Photo/Michael Varaklas
On Sunday, 295 firefighters, seven planes and five helicopters were battling outbreaks that were creating new fronts of fire, prompting evacuation orders in two villages, one in the Evros region and one in the Rodopi region.
The wildfire has burned 77,000 hectares (297 square miles) of land and had 120 hot spots, the European Union’s Copernicus Emergency Management Service said on Sunday.
Copernicus is the Earth observation component of the EU space program and uses satellite imagery to provide mapping data.
More than 600 firefighters are trying to put out the remains of three different large forest fires in Greece this weekend. AP Photo/Achilleas Chiras
Pope Francis, addressing the public in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican on Sunday, said he wanted to express assurances that he is remembering “in prayer the victims of the fires that have burned these days in north-eastern Greece.”
He also expressed a “solidarity closeness” to the Greek people.
On the northwestern outskirts of the Greek capital, another large forest fire that has been burning for days is now limited to blazes and is being fought by 160 firefighters, a plane and three helicopters.
The fire has already burned homes and part of a national park on Mount Parnitha, one of the last green areas near Athens.
A third major wildfire started on the Cycladic island of Andros on Saturday and was still not under control on Sunday; 73 firefighters, two planes and two helicopters put out the fire.
Lightning is suspected to have caused that forest fire.
Outbreaks were also taking place in a large forest fire in the central region of Viotia, the fire department reported.
With firefighting forces stretched thin, Greece has asked other European countries for help.
Germany, Sweden, Croatia and Cyprus have sent planes, while dozens of Romanian, French, Czech, Bulgarian, Albanian, Slovak and Serbian firefighters are helping on the ground.
With their hot and dry summers, the southern European countries are particularly prone to forest fires.
A burnt forest on Mount Parnitha, northwest of Athens. AP Photo/Michael Varaklas
Religious icons destroyed by fire near Athens. AP Photo/Michael Varaklas
European Union officials have blamed climate change for the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires in Europe, noting that 2022 was the second worst year on record for wildfire damage after 2017.
The causes of the two biggest fires in Greece have yet to be determined. For some of the smaller fires, authorities have said arson or negligence is suspected, and several people have been arrested.
On Saturday, fire department officials arrested two men, one on the island of Evia and one in the Larissa region of central Greece, for allegedly deliberately setting fire to dry vegetation to start forest fires.
Several other European countries have sent planes and firefighters to help fight the fires in Greece. AP Photo/Michael Varaklas
Greece imposes forest fire prevention rules, typically from early May to late October, limiting activities such as burning dry vegetation and the use of outdoor barbecues.
As of Friday, fire department officials had arrested 163 people on fire-related charges since the start of the fire prevention season, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said, including 118 for negligence and 24 for arson.
Police made another 18 arrests, he said.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn