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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Lili Bayer

Greece has brought in the army to help extinguish fires raging out of control in eastern Attica – as it happened

Athens
Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in Grammatiko, northeast Attica, Greece.
Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in Grammatiko, northeast Attica, Greece. Photograph: Alexandros Beltes/EPA

Summary of the day

  • Firefighters are battling to contain a massive blaze moving “like lightning” on the outskirts of Athens, with authorities evacuating people from towns, villages and hospitals as flames rip through trees, homes and cars.

  • Propelled by gale-force winds, the wildfire had formed a 12-mile (20km) front by Monday despite “superhuman” efforts by forest commandos and volunteers overnight.

  • Greece’s climate crisis and civil protection minister, Vassilis Kikilias, said firefighters were struggling in “dramatic conditions” that had been exacerbated by a prolonged drought.

  • A spokesperson for the Greek fire service has said that “a total of 685 firefighters, supported by 27 forest commando teams, 190 vehicles, and volunteers, are operating with the assistance of all Civil Protection agencies.”

  • Greece brought in the army to help extinguish the fires, with 88 soldiers seconded in the battle to contain blazes.

  • Power cuts were reported in several parts of Athens.

  • The Greek prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, cutting short his summer break on the island of Crete, returned to Athens to oversee the response.

Updated

Greece brings in army to help battle fires

Greece has brought in the army to help extinguish fires raging out of control in eastern Attica.

A fire brigade spokesman told the Guardian 88 soldiers had been seconded in the battle to contain blazes with firefighting efforts now focused on Nea Penteli and surrounding areas.

Penteli’s vice mayor Yannis Zounis said: “The fire has reached the central square of Pendeli and is near the yard of the old town hall.”

Not since 1998 had a forest fire been as bad, he added.

In affected areas residents could be seen with buckets and hoses trying to put out fires, while others fought back flames with olive branches.

The drama of the battle was captured by Manos Hatzakis, a volunteer firefighter, who interviewed by Mega TV at 4:45 PM local time, said: “Many houses have gone up in flames. It’s a big fire.”

Meanwhile, fire brigade spokesman Vassileios Vathrakogiannis said there had been 40 incidents of blazes reigniting since the “early morning hours.”

The flare-ups were reported across the entire area of Attica where fires had been reported. Residents in eastern Attica should be prepared to be evacuated, he said.

By mid-afternoon Greek police announced they had rescued 250 people from homes and other buildings deemed at risk. With growing numbers being evacuated the Greek Red Cross appealed for food and other materials to be gathered for the afflicted.

Updated

Greek authorities have issued an evacuation order for the Dionisos area.

Power cuts were reported in several parts of Athens and also affected traffic lights at major junctions in the centre, the Associated Press reported.

Here are the latest images from Greece.

Updated

A spokesperson for the Greek fire service has said that “a total of 685 firefighters, supported by 27 forest commando teams, 190 vehicles, and volunteers, are operating with the assistance of all Civil Protection agencies.”

Summary

Here’s a risk forecast map for tomorrow.

More evacuation orders.

An army of volunteers have also rushed to help extinguish wildfires raging north east of Athens.

Speaking to Alpha TV, Nikos Barlayiannis, among the volunteer first responders, said while police were going door-to-door urging people to evacuate homes – especially those in forested areas - not everyone was complying.

“There are some, especially older people, who are resisting,” he said. “We hope they understand the severity of the situation,” he told the station from the stricken area of Nea Makri.

Greek authorities send out emergency SMS to order evacuations in the event of natural disasters.

After the devastating loss of life six years ago, when wild fires left 104 people dead in the seaside resort of Mati, east of Athens, authorities no longer take any risks, evacuating residential areas and resorts as soon as fires erupt.

Greek TV stations showed images of flames ripping through highly inflammable pine forests. Firefighting efforts in Pendeli had not only been thwarted by the high winds but lack of visibility because of smoke. Residents in Nea Pendeli, were urging authorities, via TV channels, to send in water dropping planes and helicopters that at 2 PM local time were tearing through the area.

Updated

Here’s a map of the impacted area from Copernicus.

Areas damaged by wildfires in Greece over the past days.

Meanwhile, in Spain:

Police are investigating a businessman who is alleged to have spent 17 years stealing water from an aquifer in the southeastern region of Murcia to water the golf course at the resort he owned, causing environmental damage estimated at €65m.

Officers from the Guardia Civil force began investigating after receiving reports that illegal wells have been furtively dug at night and then camouflaged.

After overflying the area in a helicopter and investigating on the ground, they discovered 15 illegal wells and five springs that had run dry.

The businessman is now under investigation for illegally extracting underground water and damaging natural resources and the environment.

“During the investigation, officers discovered that more than two million cubic litres of water had been extracted from the aquifer each year,” the Guardia Civil said in a statement.

“According to an expert report, the illegal activity had been going on for approximately 17 years and had caused environmental damage of €65m, a sum that includes the costs of restoration and the economic costs relating to the loss of ecosystemic services.”

And here’s the full statement from Greece’s minister for climate crisis and civil protection, Vassilis Kikilias.

Since yesterday afternoon, the residents of northeastern Attica have been facing an extremely dangerous wildfire that we have been battling for over 20 hours under dramatic conditions. These challenges are due to the strong winds, prolonged drought, and the very difficult and rugged terrain of dense, unburnt forest.

Currently, a fierce battle is being waged on two fronts: one in the area of ​​Kallitechnoupoli and the other in the area of ​​Grammatikos.

The situation is improved in the areas of Dionysos, Varnavas, and Mikrochori.

A total of 670 firefighters, 27 forest commando teams, 183 vehicles, and 32 aerial units (17 aircraft and 15 helicopters) are engaged in the operations. The winds remain strong today, raging at 7 Beaufort, and are expected to remain very strong in the coming hours.

I want to be clear: The response to the initial outbreak in Varnavas, both on the ground and in the air, was immediate. The first aerial unit, was already in the air on a loaded patrol, and started operating just five minutes after the fire erupted. The first ground forces arrived within seven minutes. The forces were steadily reinforced, with the number of aerial units eventually reaching 29 and the firefighters exceeding 500.

Unfortunately, the prediction from the Risk Assessment Committee, which placed Attica and other regions of Greece on red alert, has been confirmed. We will continue with all our strength until the fire is under control and every last hotspot is extinguished.

Here’s the latest evacuation order.

Firefighters were battling to contain a massive blaze moving “like lightning” on the outskirts of Athens with authorities evacuating ever more people from towns, villages and hospitals as flames ripped through trees, homes and cars.

Propelled by gale-force winds, the wildfire had assumed a 20-kilometre front by today despite “superhuman” efforts by forest commandos and volunteers to douse the inferno overnight.

By mid-morning orders for the evacuation of eleven villages and towns, including the ancient Marathon, had been issued as Greek authorities rushed to move residents out of stricken areas. Large parts of Mount Pendeli, north of Athens, have also been engulfed by flames.

The Greek prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, cutting short his summer break on the island of Crete, returned to Athens to oversee the response in a nation where memories of the 104 people who died when similar fires ripped through the seaside resort of Mati six years ago have not been forgotten.

The inferno broke out in the vicinity of Varnava, a village 35 km northeast of the capital, sending gigantic clouds of ashen smoke billowing over Athens.

From the outset fire fighting efforts were hampered by winds that on Monday were predicted to reach 7 Beaufort and had put at least half of the country under “red alert” – the highest level of extreme fire risk in the country’s five-tier system due to the weather conditions.

Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in Grammatiko, northeast Attica, Greece, 12 August 2024.
Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire in Grammatiko, northeast Attica, Greece, 12 August 2024. Photograph: Alexandros Beltes/EPA

The Greek fire department has appealed to residents to follow evacuation orders, the Associated Press reported, with authorities noting that some people who had refused to leave their homes later became trapped.

“During the night, the wind remained strong, creating dangerous situations,” said Col. Vassileios Vathrakogiannis, the fire department’s spokesman.

He added:

Unfortunately their intensity is expected to increase in the coming hours, and in any case citizens of the areas where the fire is developing must follow the directions of authorities.

Updated

AFP reports from Penteli:

Thick smoke from burning trees filled a small square in Penteli where local resident Mariana Papathanasi said they could only pray that their houses would be saved.

“There is still a strong fire. Some houses were burned after midnight and we are trying to protect our local restaurant,” the 49-year-old supermarket employee told AFP.

Updated

“It hurts, we have grown up in this forest. We feel great sadness and anger,” 24-year old Penteli resident Marina Kalogerakou told Reuters outside her home, which the flames had nearly reached.

Watch footage from Greece as firefighters battle wildfires.

Wildfire 'extremely dangerous', Greek minister says

Greece’s minister of climate crisis and political protection, Vassilis Kikilias, has just made statements.

Describing the wildfire as “extremely dangerous,” he said firefighting forces were struggling in “dramatic conditions” exacerbated by terrain turned into a tinderbox because of prolonged drought.

It’s an extremely dangerous fire that we’ve been battling for over 20 hours in dramatic conditions because of the very strong winds and prolonged dryness.

More than 670 fire fighters, backed by 17 waterbombing planes, 15 helicopters and trucks were trying to bring the wild fire under control, and forces were being “continually reinforced.”

“Right now the battle is being waged on two fronts, one in the area of Kallitechnoupolis and the other in Grammatikos … we will continue with all our might until it is brought under control and the last front is put out,” he said.

Another evacuation order has been issued.

Greek officials advise staying in with windows shut due to fires near Athens

Yesterday, Greek authorities warned people to stay indoors with their “windows closed” as more than 400 firefighters battled to contain blazes on the outskirts of Athens that were forcing the evacuation of entire communities, including at the historic site of Marathon.

Health officials urged people to limit their movements and stay inside, saying the thick smoke had seriously affected the quality of the air across the Attic basin.

By 4pm the skies above the Greek parliament in central Syntagma Square had turned a yellowish brown as ash clouds pushed by the winds travelled southward.

At least eight people were taken to hospital with respiratory problems.

The prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, cut short his holiday and returned to Athens on Sunday evening to deal with the crisis.

Unprecedented temperatures – June and July were the hottest on record – after the warmest winter ever have turned Greece’s terrain into a tinderbox, environmentalists have said.

Read the full story here.

Here are the latest images from Greece, as emergency services battle a wildfire.

The Greek authorities have issued several evacuation orders.

Updated

Wildfire rages near Athens

A wildfire raged closer to Athens today, forcing evacuations of at least 11 towns and villages, Reuters reported citing Greek authorities.

The fire broke out on Sunday afternoon, and by this morning was burning in several areas, including the ancient town of Marathon and Mount Penteli north of Athens.

At least three hospitals had been evacuated.

Welcome to the blog

Good morning and welcome back to the blog.

Send thoughts and tips to lili.bayer@theguardian.com.

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