Greece: Wildfires Still Raging, Front Reinforced

On Sunday, wildfires continued to rage on Greece, forcing more evacuations as the firefighting front was reinforced by ground and air.

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Greece: Wildfires Continue for Second Day Near Athens

According to several reports, Greece is experiencing its worst heatwave in decades, with temperatures reaching up to 45 degrees Celsius. Extremely high temperatures, combined with humidity levels, are increasing the risk of the outbreak and spread of fires.

According to the police, as a precautionary measure, a total of 19,000 people were evacuated from the fire-stricken areas, making it the largest evacuation operation ever carried out during a fire in Greece.

Authorities and volunteers on the ground provided safe shelters to evacuees in gym facilities, conference centers, schools, and public places, along with food, water and medical assistance.

The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs activated the Crisis Management Unit to facilitate the evacuation of foreign citizens in Greece due to the ongoing forest fires; and it also set up a Help Desk in the island's airport to assist, along with the relevant embassies.

Several official reports state that Greek authorities have placed the southern part of the island in a state of emergency, as firefighters were battling the wildfires on three fronts in the south, center, and northern part of the island for the sixth consecutive day.

On Tuesday afternoon, the forest fire started, with a total of 266 firefighters, 49 water trucks and 16 ground teams operating against the blaze; they were assisted by five water-dousing helicopters and 10 aircraft.

According to the Fire Forecast Map issued by the Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministry, there is a very high risk of fire (risk category 5 and 4) for many places across the country next Monday including Attica, Evia, islands of the northern and southern Aegean, and Crete.