Greece hit by '50 percent more' wildfires than last year
The Peninsula
Athens: Greece has seen 50 percent more summer wildfires this year than in 2023, a government spokesman said on Monday. After its earliest ever hea...
Athens: Greece has seen 50 percent more summer wildfires this year than in 2023, a government spokesman said on Monday.
After its earliest-ever heatwave and warmest winter on record, Greece's summer has been marked by a series of blazes capped by a vast wildfire that devastated areas northeast of the capital Athens.
"Since May 1, firefighters have had to deal with around 4,000 fires -- a 50 percent increase on last year," spokesman Pavlos Marinakis told reporters.
The year's worst fire so far began on August 11 near the historic town of Marathon, 40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of the capital.
Fuelled by strong winds, the blaze ravaged some 10,000 hectares (25,000 acres), claimed the life of a woman in her 60s and sent thousands of people fleeing their homes.
