June 29. () –
Greek firefighters have been battling two new fires since Saturday near the Greek capital, while strong winds are hampering efforts to extinguish other fires that have triggered a state of high alert across most of the country.
One of the fires broke out on Mount Parnitha, the scene of serious forest fires last year. Smoke can be seen from Athens and residents of the capital can also smell it.
Police halted traffic on many roads in the area as dozens of firefighters, helicopters and planes tried to contain the blaze, which has so far not threatened property.
A second fire has also broken out in the Apsropirgos area, northwest of Athens, which suffered wildfires in 2023 and also earlier this year. Authorities have asked residents to evacuate part of the area as firefighters try to prevent the blaze from spreading.
A third fire that broke out Saturday morning in a town south of Athens was quickly brought under control.
Furthermore, more than half of Greece is under high or very high fire alert this weekend, mainly due to strong winds that in some cases can reach up to 88 kilometers per hour.
This follows a nearly two-week period of ongoing fire battles across the country amid higher-than-normal temperatures, strong winds and dryness that have created tinderbox conditions.
In the 24 hours ending Friday night, the country faced 44 fires. But at the same time, Thessaloniki in the north (Greece’s second largest city) experienced heavy rain that washed out some roads.
The government has implemented additional precautionary measures, such as surveillance patrols from the air and ground patrols by army forces, in a bid to prevent further fires. It also prohibits people from staying in sensitive areas such as forests and national parks.
Greece, Spain and Italy are expected to experience the hottest conditions of the summer in July, according to meteorologists surveyed by Bloomberg. In Greece the temperature rose above 40°C in June.
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