Fires rampage through forests in Greece; thousands evacuated
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Source: Associated Press
By MICHAEL VARAKLAS and ELENA BECATOROS
48 minutes ago
THRAKOMAKEDONES, Greece (AP) — Wildfires rampaged through some of Greece’s last remaining forests for yet another day Saturday, encroaching on more inhabited areas after burning scores of homes, businesses and farms during the country’s worst heat wave in three decades.
One of the massive fires advanced up the slopes of Mount Parnitha, a national park north of Athens and one of the last substantial forests near the Greek capital. The blaze sent choking smoke across the capital region, where authorities set up a hotline for residents with breathing problems. Throughout the day, fire crews struggled to contain constant flare-ups.
Thousands of residents and vacationers in areas where fires broke out days ago have fled by land and by sea as firefighters and volunteers battled through the night.
In apocalyptic scenes overnight and into Saturday morning, ferries evacuated 1,153 people from a seaside village and beaches on Evia, an island of rugged, forested mountains popular with holidaymakers and campers, after approaching flames cut off other means of escape. People clutched babies and helped elderly people traverse a pebble beach to the small ferries. Behind them, towering flames and smoke blanketed the forested hills.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/europe-middle-east-fires-greece-forests-ad72c1a6cc7db73ec2bf46ac0c3e066e
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