Villages Evacuated on Greek Tourist Island as Wildfires Rage
Firefighters in Greece are battling a series of wildfires on the popular island destination of Chios, where officials declared an emergency and a dozen communities were evacuated over the weekend, according to state media.
Three blazes broke out on Chios on Sunday, in the areas of Kofina, Agia Anna and Agios Makarios Vrontadon, the country's Hellenic Fire Service said in a Greek-language statement. It deployed 190 firefighters to battle the fire, and another 170 were expected on the island on Monday. Thirteen helicopters and four firefighting planes were also deployed.
Chios is one of the largest islands in the Aegean Sea, where throngs of tourists flock during the summer months, also the height of wildfire season.
'The situation on the island since yesterday has been quite difficult because we constantly have new fronts and resurgences and the climatic conditions are not favorable,' said Giannis Kefalogiannis, the country's Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, in a Greek-language statement on Monday.
Wildfires have long been a part of life in Greece, with its hot and dry climate. But local authorities say they have seen an uptick in the both the number and intensity of the blazes in recent years, which many experts attribute to climate change.
The authorities in Greece deployed a record number of firefighters this year in anticipation of worsening fire seasons, Mr. Kefalogiannis said in April. In recent years, the country has increased its fire patrols, used thermal imaging drones and earmarked more than 2 billion euros for new fire detection technology in an effort to manage the worsening fire seasons.
Extreme heat and high winds over the weekend turned much of Chios into a tinderbox, where fires spread quickly and were difficult to contain, officials told local media.
Additional firefighters have been brought to the island by boat, or flown in to help fortify the crews battling the fires, the Greek fire service said.
Officials from the Directorate to Investigate Arson Crimes are traveling to the island to investigate the cause of the blaze, the Hellenic Fire Service said. The three separate fires broke out at one-hour intervals.
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