Greece: Firefighters contain wildfire at resort near Athens
Sep 20, 2021, 2:37 PM | Updated: Sep 21, 2021, 10:12 am
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Firefighters in Greece have contained a wildfire that threatened homes and prompted overnight evacuations at a resort town northeast of Athens, the country’s fire service said Tuesday.
More than 150 firefighters and volunteers battled through the night, using hoses and excavators to stop the fire outside Nea Makri, 30 kilometers (18 miles) northeast of the Greek capital. At first light, two water-dropping planes and one helicopter joined the effort.
Local officials said several homes had been damaged but no injuries were reported.
Later Tuesday, another blaze broke out in a forest near the town of Megalopolis in the southern Peloponnese region, the Hellenic Fire Service said. More than 80 firefighters, assisted by eight water-dropping aircraft, worked to extinguish the fire.
Officials said a total 41 wildfires broke out around the country between Monday evening and Tuesday evening. Most were put out swiftly.
Major wildfires burned more than 1,000 square kilometers (390 square miles) this summer on the island of Evia and other parts of central and southern Greece as the country suffered its worst heat wave in decades. Greek authorities have blamed climate change for extreme weather conditions.
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