“All Burned”: A great forest fire burns toward Athens
Thousands of people are fleeing the flames, even in the suburbs of Athens. Houses and cars were burnt on the northeast edge of the metropolis. Many EU countries are sending aid.
The fire reached the suburbs of Athens, for example here in Patima Halandri.
Photo: George Vitaras/EPA (Keystone)
In Greece, wildfires raged on the outskirts of the capital Athens on Monday, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people. Smoke from the fire billowed over Athens and black clouds hung in the sky above the Acropolis, AFP reporters reported. Television images from the suburban communities of Penteli and Vrilizia, on the northeastern edge of the metropolis, showed roofs of houses and cars engulfed in flames. After Greece’s plea for help, four EU countries sent emergency services to fight the flames.
Residents spray their homes with water
In Penteli and Vrilissia, previously unimaginable scenes were witnessed: Residents wearing breathing masks to protect themselves from the heavy smoke desperately sprayed their homes with water to protect them from the approaching flames. News portal newsit.gr quoted Penteli Mayor Natassa Kosmopoulou as saying that a school and several houses were on fire, and that the fire was advancing on the city hall. The situation is “dramatic”.
Dark clouds hung over the Acropolis on Monday.
Photo: Vlachos Alexandros/EPA (Keystone)
At least one firefighter suffered severe burns during the operation, according to his brigade. Another was taken to hospital with breathing difficulties, and 13 others were treated for suffocation.
The Athens Olympic Stadium was used as an emergency shelter
In addition to the suburban communities of Penteli and Vrilissia, residents were also ordered to evacuate the Chalandri area of the Athens district. It was a precautionary measure, as the flames were “very close,” the mayor there, Simos Roussos, told broadcaster ERT.
Many firefighters were injured trying to control the fire.
Photo: Michael Varaklas/(AP Photo (Keystone)
A children’s hospital and a military clinic in Penteli were evacuated earlier. 8 people have been hospitalized due to suffocation due to smoke. The Athens Olympic Stadium, located in the north of Athens not far from Salandri, was opened as an emergency shelter for people fleeing the flames. Three major hospitals have been alerted.
The fire also broke out on Monday at the 1,109-meter-high Mount Pendeli, on the northeastern outskirts of Athens. About 700 firefighters along with 190 emergency vehicles and 30 firefighting planes and helicopters were deployed to douse the fire.
In Dioni, northeast of the capital, the fire has been burning since Monday.
Photo: Michael Varaklas/AP Photo
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis returned to the capital after canceling his summer vacation due to the fire. Greece also applied for EU aid to fight forest fires. According to the EU Commission, the EU civil protection procedure was activated at the request of Athens.
Italy, France, the Czech Republic and Romania supported Greece with firefighting forces. According to Interior Minister Gerald Dorman, 180 firefighters, 55 trucks and a helicopter were dispatched from France alone. According to the Greek Ministry of Civil Defense, aid from Spain and Turkey is “in the final stages of approval.”
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on the online service X: “We stand with Greece in the fight against the devastating fire.”
Italy, France, the Czech Republic and Romania have supported Greece with firefighting units: a firefighting helicopter fills its water tank near Penteli.
Photo: Michael Varaklas/AP Photo (Keystone)
A forest fire broke out on Sunday afternoon in the town of Varnavas, 35 kilometers northeast of Athens. According to ERT, by Monday it had created a wall of fire 30 kilometers wide and 25 meters high that was moving towards Athens.
“Despite inhumane efforts, the fire spread”
Firefighters battled through the night to put out the fire. “Despite inhumane efforts, the fire spread rapidly,” said fire department spokesman Vasilis Vatragogiannis. Accordingly, the fire spread to a total of 40 areas on Monday due to strong winds.
Authorities had already ordered the evacuation of the historic city of Marathon and seven towns northeast of Athens on Sunday. Marathon’s mayor Stergios Tsirkas told Sky TV station that his city was experiencing a “catastrophe of biblical proportions”: “The whole city is on fire.”
The fire spread to other areas due to strong winds on Monday: A helicopter sprays water on the fire in Fatima Halandri.
Photo: George Vitaras/EPA (Keystone)
After the warmest winter on record, June and July temperatures in Greece were the hottest ever recorded since records began in 1960. The risk of forest fires is therefore very high, with many fires breaking out every day.
The fires brought back memories of the 2018 disaster in the coastal town of Matti near Marathon in Greece, which killed 104 people, some of whom fled the flames in their cars.
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