Greece

ATHENS, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Large areas of the Mediterranean have sweltered under an intense summer heatwave in recent weeks and Greece, Algeria and other affected areas are battling wildfires together.

Hundreds of firefighters, helped by counterparts from Türkiye and Slovakia, have been battling blazes that have raged on the islands of Rhodes, Corfu and Evia since Wednesday amid hot, windy conditions, while emergency planes have been flying out tourists.

FIRE-FIGHTING PLANE CRASH

RHODES, Greece, July 25 (Reuters) - A plane fighting wildfires in Greece crashed on Tuesday and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis warned of tough days ahead with blazes destroying homes and forcing the evacuation of thousands of tourists from the island of Rhodes.

State broadcaster ERT showed footage of the plane dropping water over a fire and then crashing into a hillside and bursting into flames.

The Greek air force said there were two airmen aboard the amphibious Canadair CL-215 plane when it crashed over the island of Evia, east of Athens.

RHODES, Greece (AP) — A third successive heat wave in Greece pushed temperatures back above 40 C (104 F) across parts of the country Tuesday following more nighttime evacuations from fires that have raged out of control for days.

The latest evacuations orders were issued on the islands of Corfu and Evia, while a blaze on the island of Rhodes continued to move inland, torching mountainous forest areas, including part of a nature reserve.

RHODES, Greece, July 24 (Reuters) - Tour operators flew more than 2,000 holidaymakers home on Monday as wildfires raged on the island of Rhodes in what the Greek government said was the largest evacuation ever undertaken in the country.

More repatriation flights were due on Monday and Tuesday as the fires remained out of control and the Civil Protection authority warned the threat of further fires was high in almost every part of Greece, gripped by a heatwave.

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Some 19,000 people have been evacuated from the Greek island of Rhodes as wildfires burned for a sixth day on three fronts, Greek authorities said on Sunday.

The Ministry of Climate Change and Civil Protection said it was “the largest evacuation from a wildfire in the country.”

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s Fire Service intensified water drops west of Athens where a huge blaze was contained overnight, as authorities braced Thursday for a new round of extreme weather.

Seven firefighting planes and nine helicopters were operating in the area, including four planes sent from Italy and France as part of a European Union support mechanism.

Searing heat across Europe’s Mediterranean south has maintained a high or very high risk of fires in Spain, Italy and Greece.

ATHENS, Jul 19 (NNN-AMNA) – Hundreds of Greek firefighters continued for a second day yesterday, to battle two major wildfires near Dervenochoria, some 30 km north-west of Athens, and near the seaside resort of Loutraki, about 80 km south-west of the capital, authorities said.

No injuries have been reported, but the blazes scorched forested areas and forced the evacuation of six settlements, Fire Service spokesperson, Vasilios Vathrakogiannis, said, in a press release.

LOUTRAKI, Greece (AP) — Wildfires outside Athens forced thousands to flee seaside resorts, closed highways and gutted vacation homes Monday, as high winds pushed flames through hillside scrub and pine forests parched by days of extreme heat.

Authorities issued evacuation orders for at least six seaside communities as two major wildfires edged closer to summer resort towns and gusts of wind hit 70 kph (45 mph).

KOUVARAS, Greece, July 17 (Reuters) - Villagers were ordered to leave their homes and hundreds of children were evacuated from a summer camp as two separate wildfires fanned by strong winds damaged houses to the southeast and west of Athens on Monday, authorities said.

The blaze that broke out in the village of Kouvaras, about 27 km (17 miles) from the Greek capital, spread fast amid erratic winds, a Greek fire service official said.

About 200 firemen with the help of around 20 soldiers, 68 engines and 16 aircraft were trying to control the flames, the official added.

11 July 2023; MEMO: A new investigation by the Guardian and others has found that attempts by the Greek coastguard in June to tow a boat carrying roughly 750 refugees which capsized leaving only 104 survivors may have caused the vessel to sink.

Most of the passengers were from Egypt, Syria, Palestine and Pakistan. Nine of the survivors have been arrested on charges of involuntary manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and migrant smuggling and have denied the charges.