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Drone shows aftermath of forest wildfire near Athens
The fire that erupted in the foothills of Mount Parnitha on Tuesday, a pine-covered mountain north of Athens, has been contained but weather conditions meant there was still a high threat it could flare up again.Wildfires have erupted in many parts of the country during a week long heatwave, Greece’s worst in three decades, with searing temperatures and hot winds creating tinder-box conditions. Across the country, forest land has burned and dozens of homes and businesses have been destroyed.A blaze on Evia, a large island east of the capital, was burning for a sixth days, ripping through thousands of hectares of pristine forest across its northern part, and forcing the evacuation of dozens of villages.”We are dealing with two main fronts, at a great distance from each other, in north and south Evia. In north Evia, south-easterly wind gusts that can reach four Beaufort are driving the fire towards coastal villages,” deputy civil protection minister, Nikos Hardalias told an emergency briefing on Sunday.More than 570 firefighters are battling the blaze in Evia, where two active fronts were burning in the north and south of the island.
