Greece’s worst wildfire of the year weakened due to weak winds on the outskirts of the capital Athens after killing a person, Euractiv reported.
Hundreds of firefighters backed by 10 waterbombing aircraft have been battling the blaze since Sunday when it spread from the forest into Athens’ northern suburbs, burning homes and causing panic. A fire brigade spokesman said:
The situation has improved, but there are random blazes. At the time being we don’t have any new fronts, only some rekindlings, but we remain on high alert.
The government announced measures to compensate and help victims of the fire, which Greece’s National Observatory said damaged about 10,000 hectares of land. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was expected to chair a ministerial meeting on the fire on Tuesday.
Firefighting aircraft arrived from France and Italy as part of the European Civil Protection Mechanism, a government spokesperson reported. The Czech Republic has sent 75 firefighters and 25 vehicles to assist ground teams.
The fire reached the suburb of Vrilissia, about 14 km from the centre of Athens, on Monday, where a 64-year-old woman was found dead inside a local enterprise, eyewitnesses said. The cause of the forest fire has yet to be determined.
With strong winds expected to resume, Greece will remain on high fire alert until Thursday, with temperatures forecast to reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). Climate change has led to hotter weather and less rain, increasing the risk of wildfires.
Nikos Lavranos, head of the Greek federation of fire service employees, said:
The wildfire had all the characteristics that we, as firefighters, don’t want a forest fire to have. A combination of hot, dry and windy (conditions). It was extremely aggressive, difficult to manage and unpredictable.
More than 30 neighbourhoods have been evacuated, as well as at least three hospitals, and power has been cut in some parts of Athens. Measures announced Tuesday by the climate crisis and civil defence ministry include rental subsidies, a three-year property tax exemption, and financial aid.
However, opposition parties accused the government of not doing enough to avert disaster.
