Wildfires rage in Greece, as France blazes contained
Ivana Sekularac, Daria Sito-Sucic, Edward McAllister and Michele Kambas |
At least one person has died, and homes and farmlands have been destroyed, as wildfires stoked by gale-force winds broke out across Greece, as a massive fire in France has been contained.
The blazes in Greece on Friday ran from the southern outskirts of the capital Athens to regions near Ancient Olympia.
A major blaze broke out in the small town of Keratea southwest of Athens. Firefighters discovered the body of an elderly man in a burned-out structure there, Greek Fire Brigade Spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said during a briefing.
In the region of Ancient Olympia in the southwest of the country, huge flames devoured olive groves and forestland. Another fire broke out on the touristy island of Kefalonia.
Much of the region around Athens has seen barely a drop of rain in months.
Wind gusts of up to 80km/h fanned the flames, setting olive tree orchards alight. Homes were engulfed as locals wearing flimsy face masks assisted firefighters.
Witnesses said the wind gusts were so strong that dousing some areas was near impossible.
“The wind would push it back,” a Keratea resident told Reuters.
High winds are expected through the weekend and beyond.
At Ancient Olympia, an extensive region in the western Peloponnese that includes the site of the first Olympic Games, firefighters were battling a blaze fanned by interchanging winds.
“If the wind doesn’t die down we will have huge problems,” Ancient Olympia vice-mayor Georgios Linardos told state broadcaster ERT.
Gale-force winds caused extensive delays in the sailing of ferry boats from ports around Athens. On the island of Milos, two Vietnamese holidaymakers drowned at sea amid the high gusts, a coast guard official said.
Greece and other Mediterranean countries are in an area dubbed “a wildfire hotspot” by scientists, with blazes common during hot and dry summers. These have become more destructive in recent years due to a fast-changing climate, prompting calls for a new approach.
Meanwhile, a massive wildfire that has scorched through 16,000ha of forest and villages in southern France since Tuesday has been contained, local authorities said on Thursday.
Firefighters will remain deployed in the area in the coming days to secure the site and prevent flare-ups.
Residents affected by the blaze are still barred from returning to their homes without official clearance, as many roads remain closed and potentially hazardous due to uninspected damage and fallen power lines.
France’s biggest wildfire in nearly eight decades has killed a woman whom officials said had disregarded evacuation orders, made 18 injuries, including 16 firefighters. The blaze destroyed 36 houses, damaged 20 others, and forced some 2,000 residents and holidaymakers to flee the area.
At the height of the crisis, approximately 5000 households lost power, and as of Thursday evening, around 1500 homes were still without electricity, local authorities said.
Plumes of smoke rose over the forest area in the Aude region. Drone footage showed swathes of charred earth after the fire swept across an area one-and-a-half times the size of Paris.
The blaze, not far from the border with Spain and the Mediterranean Sea, spread unusually rapidly, fanned by strong winds and very dry vegetation, following months of drought in the area.
Close to 2000 firefighters were on the ground to fight any flare-ups.
Reuters
