A major wildfire started on Sunday afternoon and continues to burn near Athens. According to local media reports, Monday prompted the evacuation of hospitals and numerous communities in northeastern Athens. The fire, which originated in the Varnavas region, is being driven by winds of 7-8 on the Beaufort scale, creating a fire front spanning over 18 square miles, as state-run ERT news agency reported.
According to firefighter service spokesperson Vassilis Vathrakogiannis, nearly 700 firefighters, 27 forest commando units, and 190 fire engines are working to contain the blaze, supported by 17 helicopters with both Bambi Buckets and tanks, 16 fixed wing firefighting aircraft, and various volunteers, despite challenging weather conditions.
The Civil Protection General Secretariat has sought assistance through the European Civil Defense Mechanism, RescuEU, which has provided a firefighting helicopter from France, two aircraft from Italy, along with 75 firefighters and 25 vehicles, are expected to arrive tomorrow to aid in the firefighting efforts.
Additionally, after extending support to Türkiye, Greece has received an offer from its Aegean neighbor to send two firefighting planes and one helicopter to assist in combating the fire.
