Thousands evacuated as wildfires rip through Greece
Firefighters and desperate locals continue to battle raging wildfires on the island of Evia, northeast of the capital Athens for a sixth day, while hundreds of people are forced to flee their homes.
Local authorities are struggling to shelter those forced to flee their homes. Provisional shelter has been provided to 2,000 people evacuated from the island.
Wildfires have erupted in many parts of the country during a weeklong heatwave, Greece's worst in three decades, with soaring temperatures and hot winds. Across the country, forests have burned and dozens of homes and businesses have been destroyed.
From July 29 to August 7, 56,655 hectares were burnt in Greece, according to the European Forest Fire Information System. The average area burnt over the same 10 summer days between 2008 and 2020 was 1,700 hectares.
Greece and Turkey have been battling devastating fires for nearly two weeks as the region suffered its worst heatwave in decades, which experts have linked to climate change.
So far, the fires have killed two people in Greece and eight in neighboring Turkey, with dozens more hospitalized. While rain brought some respite from the blazes in Turkey over the weekend, Greece continues to endure soaring temperatures.
