Greece Faces Hardest Wildfire Incidents in Season So Far

On Sunday, Greece faced a hard series of wildfires near the Greece capital Athens as the country is still suffering from successive heatwaves.

Greece recorded 44°C (111°F) among the earliest heatwaves.

Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Vasilis Kikilias said: "Today in Attica two extremely dangerous fires that broke out in residential areas and spread rapidly due to strong winds in Keratea and Stamata were tackled."

He added there was no longer active fires in Stamata, north of Athens, but there were some minor reignitions in the eastern area of Keratea.

He said "ground forces will remain in the field throughout the night".

Since Sunday noon, the authorities called for the evacuation of at least eight areas near the Athens, with flames damaged several cars and houses.

Fire department spokesperson Vasilis Vathrakogiannis said on Sunday afternoon: "Today is the hardest that the Fire Brigade has faced in this year's firefighting season," 

"The situation is very difficult, as strong winds continue to blow, they have not subsided and the outbreaks are many," the mayor of Lavreotiki, Dimitris Loukas, told Athens News Agency.