Latest news with #Peloponnese
Times
2 days ago
- Climate
- Times
Homes evacuated as wildfires rage across Greece
Firefighters across Greece were battling dozens of wildfires on Sunday as officials evacuated residents in the Peloponnese. More than 50 wildfires broke out across the country as Greece sweltered under temperatures of up to 44C. In one of the most serious incidents, a fire near the village of Drosopigi, close to Athens, the Greek capital, burnt two houses, forcing residents to flee. At least five people were taken to hospital for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation. More than 200 firefighters, supported by helicopters and water-bombing aircraft, were still operating in the area on Sunday morning. Teams from Italy and the Czech Republic were expected to arrive later in the day. Battling the flames, on the ground and from above, in the suburbs of Athens YANNIS KOLESIDIS/EPA ALKIS KONSTANTINIDIS/REUTERS On the island of Evia, officials said a second blaze near Pissona had got 'out of control', moving quickly towards Afrati.
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Climate
- Telegraph
Greek islands hit by wildfires whipped by ‘worrying' windy conditions
Greece battled wildfires that have ravaged homes and prompted evacuations for a second day on Sunday, with the help of Czech firefighters and Italian aircraft expected to arrive later. Five fires were still raging on Sunday morning in the Peloponnese area, west of Athens, as well as on the islands of Evia, Kythira and Crete, with aircraft and helicopters resuming their work in several parts of the country at dawn. 'Today is expected to be a difficult day with a very high risk of fire, almost throughout the territory,' Vassilis Vathrakogiannis, a fire brigade spokesman, said on Sunday, though he added that the situation was improving. Forecasters predicted the strong winds that have fanned the flames would die down on Sunday in most areas but warned that Kythira, an popular tourist island with 3,600 inhabitants, continued to face 'worrying' windy conditions. Evacuation messages were sent to people on the island, which lies off the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese, early on Sunday as the fire raged on. 'Houses, beehives, olive trees have been burnt,' Giorgos Komninos, deputy mayor of Kythira, told state-run ERT News channel. 'A monastery is in direct danger right now,' he said, adding that half of the island had been burnt. Dozens of firefighters supported by three helicopters and two aircraft were battling the Kythira blaze, which erupted Saturday morning and forced the evacuation of a popular tourist beach. Greece had earlier requested help from EU allies and two Italian aircraft were expected to arrive on Sunday, according to the fire brigade. Units from the Czech Republic's fire brigade were already at work on the island. Officials have reported 11 regions of Greece still face a very high fire risk. Firefighters are working in several areas of the Peloponnese and there were numerous flare-ups overnight on the island of Evia, near Athens, where the flames have laid waste to swathes of forest and killed thousands of farm animals. Workers have toiled since dawn to repair serious damage to Evia's electricity network and some villages were facing problems with water supply. Further south of Crete, reports said fires that broke out on Saturday afternoon, which destroyed four houses and a church, had largely been contained. In Kryoneri, north of Athens, police were reportedly bolstering security as fears grow that looters could target houses abandoned by residents fleeing a fire that erupted on Saturday afternoon. By Sunday the blaze was mostly contained. 'We are fighting here. What can we do,' asked Kryoneri Giorgos, wearing a mask to protect himself from the smoke. He told AFP on Saturday afternoon he and others were battling to save 'the work of a lifetime'. 'By the time I got here the flames were already up here. It all happened so fast,' said Alexandros Andonopoulos, who rushed from Athens to the village. 'Fortunately the firemen arrived quickly.' Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the prime minister of Greece, wrote on social media that anyone who lost possessions 'should know that the state will be by their side'. He said Saturday was a 'titanic' struggle but 'the picture today looks better and the battle continues with all available resources'. Greece has endured heatwave conditions for almost a week, with temperatures passing 40C (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in many areas. On Saturday, the temperature reached 45.2C in Amfilohia, in western Greece. The extreme heat is expected to die down from Monday. Last month, fires on Greece's fifth-biggest island Chios in the northern Aegean Sea, destroyed 4,700 hectares (11,600 acres) of land, while in early July a wildfire in Crete forced the evacuation of 5,000 people. The most destructive year for wildfires in the country that is deemed a climate change hotspot was 2023, when nearly 175,000 hectares were lost and there were 20 deaths. Greece, like many countries, is experiencing hotter summers stoked by human-induced climate change, which increases the length, frequency and intensity of wildfires. Turkey's environment ministry said on Saturday that meteorologists had registered a reading of 50.5C in the south-east of the country, a nationwide record. The record temperature was registered on Friday in the south-eastern city of Silopi, the ministry said. And across the country, 132 weather stations had registered record temperatures for the month of July, the statement added. Silopi, in the province of Sirnak, sits just 10 kilometres (six miles) from Turkey's borders with Iraq and Syria. The previous heat record in temperature, recorded in August 2023, was 49.5C. The country is currently in the grip of a heatwave and is fighting fires in a number of regions. Firefighters have been struggling for four days to contain one in the northern Karabuk province, forcing the evacuation of several villagers. On Wednesday, 10 people perished fighting a fire in the western Eskisehir province. The heatwave, which is expected to last several days more, has forced some local authorities to announce restrictions on water consumption, including the seaside resort of Cesme, near Izmir on Turkey's west coast.
Arab News
2 days ago
- Climate
- Arab News
Greece gets EU help to battle disastrous wildfires
ATHENS: Greece battled wildfires that have ravaged homes and sparked evacuations for a second day on Sunday, with the help of Czech firefighters and Italian aircraft expected to arrive later. Five fires were still raging Sunday morning in the Peloponnese area west of the capital, as well as on the islands of Evia, Kythera and Crete, with aircraft and helicopters resuming their work in several parts of the country at dawn. 'Today is expected to be a difficult day with a very high risk of fire, almost throughout the territory,' fire brigade spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said Sunday, though he added that the situation was improving. Forecasters predicted the strong winds that have fanned the flames would die down on Sunday in most areas but warned that Kythera, a popular tourist island with 3,600 inhabitants, continued to face 'worrying' windy conditions. Evacuation messages were sent to people on the island, which lies off the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese, early on Sunday as the fire raged unabated. 'Houses, beehives, olive trees have been burnt,' Giorgos Komninos, deputy mayor of Kythera, told state-run ERT News channel. 'A monastery is in direct danger right now,' he said, adding that half of the island had been burnt. Dozens of firefighters supported by three helicopters and two aircraft were battling the Kythera blaze, which erupted Saturday morning and forced the evacuation of a popular tourist beach. Greece had earlier requested help from EU allies and two Italian aircraft were expected Sunday, according to the fire brigade, with units from the Czech Republic already at work. Eleven regions of Greece still face a very high fire risk, according to officials. Firefighters are working in several areas of the Peloponnese and there were numerous flare-ups overnight on the island of Evia, near Athens, where the flames have laid waste to swathes of forest and killed thousands of farm animals. Workers have toiled since dawn to repair serious damage to Evia's electricity network and some villages were facing problems with water supply. Further south on Crete, reports said fires that broke out on Saturday afternoon and destroyed four houses and a church and largely been contained. In Kryoneri north of Athens, police were reportedly bolstering security as fears grow that looters could target houses abandoned by residents fleeing a fire that erupted on Saturday afternoon but was mostly contained on Sunday. 'We are fighting here. What can we do,' asked Kryoneri Giorgos, wearing a mask to protect himself from the smoke. He said on Saturday afternoon he and others were battling to save 'the work of a lifetime.' 'By the time I got here the flames were already up here. It all happened so fast,' said Alexandros Andonopoulos, who rushed from Athens to the village. 'Fortunately the firemen arrived quickly.' Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis wrote on social media that anyone who lost possessions 'should know that the state will be by their side.' He said Saturday was a 'titanic' struggle but 'the picture today looks better and the battle continues with all available resources.' Greece has endured heatwave conditions for almost a week, with temperatures passing 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in many areas. On Saturday, the temperature reached 45.2C in Amfilohia, in western Greece. The extreme heat is expected to die down from Monday. Last month, fires on Greece's fifth-biggest island Chios, in the northern Aegean, destroyed 4,700 hectares of land, while early July a wildfire on Crete forced the evacuation of 5,000 people. The most destructive year for wildfires in the country that is deemed a climate change hotspot, was 2023, when nearly 175,000 hectares were lost and there were 20 deaths. Greece, like many countries is experiencing hotter summers stoked by human-induced climate change, which increases the length, frequency and intensity of wildfires.
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Greece enlists help from European allies to tackle raging wildfires
Greece is battling wildfires that have ravaged homes and led to evacuations for a second day, with the help of Czech firefighters and Italian aircraft expected to arrive later on Sunday. The wildfires were raging on Sunday morning in the Peloponnese area west of the capital, as well as on the islands of Evia and Kythera, with aircraft and helicopters resuming their work in several parts of the country at dawn. 'Today is expected to be a difficult day with a very high risk of fire, almost throughout the territory', the fire brigade spokesperson Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said, though he added that the situation was improving. Forecasters predicted the strong winds that have fanned the flames would die down in most areas, but warned that Kythera – a popular tourist island with 3,600 inhabitants – continued to face 'worrying' windy conditions. Evacuation messages were sent early on Sunday to people on the island, which lies off the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese, as the fires continued unabated. 'Houses, beehives, olive trees have been burnt,' Giorgos Komninos, the deputy mayor of Kythera, told local outlet ERT News. 'A monastery is in direct danger right now,' he said, adding that half of the island had been burnt. Dozens of firefighters supported by three helicopters and two aircraft were battling the Kythera blaze, which erupted on Saturday morning and forced the evacuation of a popular tourist beach. Greece had requested help from EU allies and two Italian aircraft were expected on Sunday, according to the fire brigade, with units from the Czech Republic already at work. Eleven regions of Greece still face a very high fire risk, according to officials. Firefighters are working in several areas of the Peloponnese and there were flare-ups overnight on the island of Evia, near Athens, where the flames have destroyed swathes of forest and killed thousands of farm animals. Workers have been scrambling since dawn to repair serious damage to Evia's electricity network and some villages were facing problems with water supply. Further south, on Crete, reports said fires that broke out on Saturday afternoon and destroyed four houses and a church had been largely contained. Police were reportedly bolstering forces in Kryoneri, north of Athens, as fears grow that looters could target houses abandoned by their owners fleeing a fire that erupted on Saturday afternoon but was mostly contained on Sunday. Greece has endured heatwave conditions for almost a week, with temperatures passing 40C (104F) in many areas. On Saturday, the temperature reached 45.2C in Amfilochia, in western Greece. The extreme heat is expected to die down from Monday. Last month, fires on Greece's fifth-biggest island Chios, in the northern Aegean, destroyed 4,700 hectares (11,600 acres) of land. In early July, a wildfire on Crete forced the evacuation of 5,000 people. The most destructive year for wildfires was 2023, when nearly 175,000 hectares were lost and there were 20 deaths.
Al Jazeera
3 days ago
- Climate
- Al Jazeera
Photos: Greece battles major wildfires amid persistent heatwave
Published On 27 Jul 2025 27 Jul 2025 Greek emergency services are battling numerous wildfires as a weeklong heatwave peaked with temperatures surpassing 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit). Fires were still raging on Sunday morning in the Peloponnese area west of the capital, Athens, as well as on the islands of Evia and Kythera, with planes and helicopters resuming their work in several parts of the country at dawn. According to firefighters, one of the most difficult fronts was around Drosopigi in northern Attica, just 30km (18.6 miles) north of Athens. Authorities called for an evacuation of the village, while, according to state-run Ertnews TV, a house was already alight in Drosopigi, as winds of 5 to 6 Beaufort (in the range of 30-50km/h or 19-31mph) raged. Authorities on Saturday warned of an extreme risk of wildfires, placing several regions under a red Category 5 alert, the highest on the national scale, due to hot and dry conditions. A heatwave in Greece that began last Monday was expected to last until this Monday, according to the country's meteorological service. The National Observatory in Athens said the warmest temperature recorded on Friday was 45.8C ( 114.5F) in the Peloponnese region of Messinia. On Saturday, the temperature reached 45.2C (113.4F) in Amfilochia, western Greece. About 100 firefighters were battling the blaze near Drosopigi with 36 vehicles, two aeroplanes and three helicopters, according to the Athens News Agency. On the island of Evia near the Attica region of Athens, a fire was also raging out of control. Two fire engines were destroyed while two firefighters were taken to hospital with minor injuries. A wildfire that broke out shortly before 9:30am (06:30 GMT) on Saturday in an agricultural and forested area on the island of Kythera in southern Greece was also out of control. Strong winds are causing the fire to spread rapidly and prompting evacuations of several settlements. Greece has sought assistance from the European Union to battle the wildfires.
