Uncontrolled flames continue to rage on Tuesday, August 22, in northeastern Greece, as well as in the islands of Euboea (near Athens) and Kythnos, and in the region of Boeotia (Center). At least two people died, and many residents were evacuated. Strong winds and temperatures of up to 41°C make it difficult for firefighters to intervene. This is the second wave of deadly fires in the space of a month in the country.
“There are nine active fronts,” a spokeswoman for the fire department told Agence France-Presse. “It’s a similar situation to July,” she added, referring to a previous wave of fires, which left five people dead.
On Monday evening, an evacuation order was given to the hospital in Alexandroupoli, a port city in northeastern Greece, located in an area where fires have been going on for four days. The Coast Guard says it evacuated sixty-five patients to a ferry waiting in the harbour. In the center of the island of Evia, the evacuation was ordered Monday evening in the industrial city of Nea Artaki, where the fire damaged poultry and pig farms.
European Union aid
A shepherd was found dead Monday in Boeotia, and a body, presumed to be that of an undocumented migrant, was discovered in the evening in Dadia National Park in the north of the country. Dadia Park, threatened by the flames, is located near Alexandroupoli. It is one of the most important protected areas in Europe. This site, which hosts rare birds, is the only place in the Balkans where the black vulture breeds.
The European Union has announced that it is deploying two firefighting aircraft based in Cyprus and a Romanian firefighting team, through its Civil Protection Mechanism. Very hot and dry conditions, which increase the risk of fires, will persist in Greece until Friday, according to the meteorological services.
On July 18, a fire fanned by strong winds had ravaged nearly 17,770 hectares in ten days in the south of Rhodes, a popular tourist island in the southeast of the Aegean Sea. About 20,000 people, mostly tourists, had to be evacuated. At the end of July, the country experienced its worst heat wave for a month of July, with temperatures exceeding 40°C in many places, according to the National Observatory of Athens.