Latest news with #NikosLonginos
New York Times
24-07-2025
- Climate
- New York Times
Sprawling Wildfires Kill 2 and Force Evacuations in Cyprus Amid Stifling Heat
Firefighters in Cyprus on Thursday were battling sprawling wildfires that have killed at least two people and forced evacuations on the island, the authorities told local news media. The wildfires broke out on Wednesday and spread through a mountainous region near the southern city of Limassol, prompting dozens of people in several communities in the area to evacuate. The blaze, which burned homes and trees, covered nearly 39 square miles, or more than 24,000 acres, a spokesman for Cyprus Fire Brigade said on Thursday. Two people were found dead inside a charred vehicle, and dozens of others were treated for respiratory problems, the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation, the country's public broadcaster, reported, and more than 100 people had been evacuated and staying in temporary shelters. Photos and videos circulating online showed red flames and smoke billowing from mountainsides. Eastern Europe has been sweltering under extreme heat and dry conditions for over a week, with heat alerts issued from northern Scandinavia all the way south to Cyprus. The fire brigade in Cyprus this week had warned of a high risk of wildfires. Investigators were still investigating the cause of the fire, which broke out near the village of Malia, but the chief of the Fire Brigade, Nikos Longinos, told the broadcaster that eyewitnesses reports suggested an arsonist was responsible. At least 14 aircraft were fighting the blaze from the air, a spokesman for the government of Cyprus said on Wednesday. Firefighters had controlled some fires but were racing to combat flare-ups on Thursday, Andreas Kettis, the spokesman for the Fire Brigade, said. Spain and Jordan were sending firefighting aircraft to help after Cyprus requested assistance, he said. The European Union also said Thursday that it had sent two airplanes from its joint firefighting fleet. The authorities in Cyprus warned residents on Thursday that many areas near the fire remained inaccessible or dangerous because of falling power lines on roads. More than a dozen communities remained without power, and the Electricity Authority of Cyprus said on Thursday in a social media post that it had only assessed damage in about 20 percent of the fire-affected area. 'The situation is very challenging,' it said. The hot and dry weather in the region was expected to persist. Heat alerts were issued through Thursday, and inland temperatures could reach up to 111 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the Cyprus Department of Meteorology. (The average July maximum in Cyprus is typically around 90 degrees Fahrenheit.) The extreme heat is expected to ease early next week. Greece has also experienced punishing heat, with temperatures reaching nearly 113 degrees Fahrenheit in some parts on Tuesday. The heat has prompted concerns over the severity of this year's wildfire season. A large wildfire near Corinth in southern Greece on Tuesday prompted the evacuation of several villages. Niki Kitsantonis and Nazaneen Ghaffar contributed reporting.
Euronews
23-07-2025
- Climate
- Euronews
Crews in Cyprus battle huge wildfires, villages forced to evacuate
Cypriot firefighters have spent Wednesday battling a huge wildfire which has forced people living in at least four villages in the southern Limassol area to evacuate. Justice Minister Marios Hartsiotis and Chief Fire Officer Nikos Longinos are at the scene of the fire, public broadcaster CyBC reported. The broadcaster said authorities had initiated the "Icarus II" emergency response plan which is supported by 10 fire engines and six firefighting aircraft. Personnel from the British military bases Akrotiri and Dhekelia are reportedly also assisting in the operation. "I can confirm that there is considerable damage to some homes," spokesperson for the fire service Andreas Kettis told CyBC. He said the Limassol fire broke out around noon on Wednesday and that fire crews are on the ground trying to bring it under control. Meanwhile, the Civil Defence is evacuating the community of Agia Varvara in the southwestern city of Paphos after a new fire that broke out at 4pm in the area in the afternoon. Two aircraft were sent to the area to help the five fire engines extinguish the blaze, but firefighting efforts were reportedly hampered by strong winds. Wednesday's fires broke out on the first day of a heatwave in Cyprus with forecasters expecting temperatures on Thursday to hit 45 degrees Celsius, making it the hottest day of the year. High temperatures are expected to continue until at least Monday and authorities have issued an amber alert heat warning. The Ministry of Health is urging the public to take necessary precautions to protect themselves from the heatwave. It has advised vulnerable groups such as young children, the elderly, pregnant women and people with chronic diseases to take particular care. Heatwaves and climate change Climatologists have sounded the alarm that climate change-linked activity is causing record-breaking temperatures across much of the Mediterranean region. The Mediterranean "is on fire," meteorologist Marta Almarcha wrote in a post for Spain's weather portal earlier this month. Last week, a sea surface temperature of 30C was recorded by a tide gauge in Mallorca. Coastal areas around France and western Italy are also setting very high temperatures for this time of year. In fact, almost the entire Mediterranean basin is suffering a marine heatwave, Almarcha added. Researchers at Carbon Brief recently mapped every published scientific study detailing how climate change has influenced extreme weather. This analysis covered 116 heat-related events in Europe. Of this total, scientists deemed 110 (95%) were made more severe or more likely because of climate change. June heatwaves are around ten times more likely to occur now compared to pre-industrial times because of the impact of climate change, scientists at World Weather Attribution estimate. Others say atmospheric events driving heatwaves have almost tripled in strength and duration since the 1950s. The latest European State of the Climate report from the EU's Copernicus service said that Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent and is experiencing serious impacts from extreme weather and climate change.
