Greece is battling a series of wildfires near the capital Athens on Sunday afternoon, as the country braces for another scorching summer. The nation faces a tough wildfire season following its warmest winter and earliest heatwave on record, with temperatures soaring to 44°C (111°F).
Two large wildfires were raging in Attica on Sunday afternoon, prompting evacuation orders for residents in eight areas near Athens. Over 140 firefighters, aided by forest commandos, 39 vehicles, eight helicopters, and nine aircraft, were working to control the flames in Keratea, south of Athens. According to Ertnews channel, at least four houses were completely destroyed.
“The situation is very difficult, as strong winds continue to blow, they have not subsided and the outbreaks are many,” the mayor of Lavreotiki, Dimitris Loukas, told Athens News Agency. “We are fighting a great battle.” He warned that “the wind is very strong and is constantly creating outbreaks” but assured that the nearby military air base was not currently in danger from the flames.
The incident came a day after another wildfire erupted in the same area, triggering evacuation orders before being successfully controlled. North of Athens, another blaze ignited in the suburb of Stamata, prompting emergency messages for residents to evacuate. Fire brigade spokesman Vasileios Vathrakogiannis described the day as “the most difficult of the year so far for the Fire Brigade.”
An industrial zone in Ritsona, near the island of Evia, also experienced a fire on Sunday. Black smoke billowed into the sky after a fire broke out in a recycling factory, consuming flammable materials like tires and mattresses. Firefighters were positioned along the old Ritsona national road, working to prevent the flames from spreading beyond the recycling plant to other factories in the area. The fire is near a refugee center, but according to the Athens News Agency, it was not believed to be in danger.
Separately, a large wildfire erupted on Serifos island on Saturday afternoon, but firefighters brought it under control early Sunday. “All of southwestern Serifos has burned. We are talking about an area where the fire stopped at the sea,” Serifos mayor Konstantinos Revintis told MEGA TV. The fire caused damage to houses, cottages, warehouses, and chapels, according to the mayor.
The Fire Danger Forecast Map issued by the Civil Protection Ministry for Sunday predicted a very high category 4 risk of fire for Attica, the Peloponnese, Crete, the North and South Aegean Regions, and central Greece. A wildfire ignited on Saturday afternoon in the area of Mount Parnitha, known as “the lungs of Athens,” was controlled Saturday evening with the help of reinforcements from other regions and volunteer firefighters.
More than forty wildfires erupted across Greece on Saturday, fueled by wind speeds exceeding 100 kilometers (62 miles) per hour, according to fire brigade sources. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged Greeks to prepare for a challenging wildfire season in his weekly Facebook post on Sunday. “The difficult times are still ahead of us. Our effort is continuous. In this effort, our allies are new tools that build a new culture of prevention and responsibility,” he said.
