A wildfire that started on Friday evening in western Peloponnese, Greece, is still burning, as strong winds fuel the blaze.
The fire erupted in Ahaia region on Friday evening and spread to the neighboring Ilia region, prompting authorities to order several villages to evacuate. A volunteer firefighter died in Peloponnese and a firefighter who had been exposed in Ilia went to hospital for first aid before he was released, according to state-run Athens News Agency.
Greek firefighters have been under pressure since Wednesday when a wildfire broke out near Athens, the first close to the Greek capital city this season. Authorities have received calls to extinguish hundreds of blazes in the past three days, including 64 blazes between Thursday evening and Friday evening alone.
Properties were damaged or destroyed on Friday as winds reached 120 kilometers (75 miles) per hour. While winds are expected to slightly calm on Saturday, Peloponnese will remain on very high fire alert status.
In 2023, wildfires scorched about 1.3% of Greece’s land area. The country recorded its hottest June day earlier this month and is expected to see some 40C (140F) on Saturday. Given the weather conditions, Athens and its greater region will also be under very high wildfire alert for the whole day.
The heat that’s blanketing southeast Europe was accompanied by power blackouts on Friday in parts of Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro and Albania, causing public transport disruptions, internet outages and leaving people stranded in elevators.
Climate change means this year is on track to be the hottest on record, with the death toll from searing temperatures and extreme weather events climbing from India and Saudi Arabia to the US and Brazil.
The fire erupted in Ahaia region on Friday evening and spread to the neighboring Ilia region, prompting authorities to order several villages to evacuate. A volunteer firefighter died in Peloponnese and a firefighter who had been exposed in Ilia went to hospital for first aid before he was released, according to state-run Athens News Agency.
Greek firefighters have been under pressure since Wednesday when a wildfire broke out near Athens, the first close to the Greek capital city this season. Authorities have received calls to extinguish hundreds of blazes in the past three days, including 64 blazes between Thursday evening and Friday evening alone.
Properties were damaged or destroyed on Friday as winds reached 120 kilometers (75 miles) per hour. While winds are expected to slightly calm on Saturday, Peloponnese will remain on very high fire alert status.
In 2023, wildfires scorched about 1.3% of Greece’s land area. The country recorded its hottest June day earlier this month and is expected to see some 40C (140F) on Saturday. Given the weather conditions, Athens and its greater region will also be under very high wildfire alert for the whole day.
The heat that’s blanketing southeast Europe was accompanied by power blackouts on Friday in parts of Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro and Albania, causing public transport disruptions, internet outages and leaving people stranded in elevators.
Climate change means this year is on track to be the hottest on record, with the death toll from searing temperatures and extreme weather events climbing from India and Saudi Arabia to the US and Brazil.