ATHENS, Greece — More than a thousand firefighters battled wildfires Tuesday in Greece, with the largest burning out of control through a nature reserve on the island of Evia north of Athens causing four villages and a monastery to be evacuated.
The country’s civil protection authority declared a state of emergency in the area of Evia affected by the fire, where about 280 firefighters, volunteers, soldiers, six water-dropping planes and six helicopters were deployed, along with one more helicopter coordinating the air support.
Greece called on the European civil protection organization for assistance, and four firefighting planes were being sent from Croatia and Italy, said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who cut short his summer vacation and returned to the Greek capital to visit the fire department’s main coordination center.
“The conditions today are exceptionally difficult,” Mitsotakis said. He thanked firefighters for their efforts and said the government’s main concern was protecting human life.
Strong winds fanned the fire in the thickly forested Evia reserve, as well as several more wildfires burning Tuesday in Greece. A total of 56 forest fires broke out around the country in a 24-hour period spanning Monday night and Tuesday.
More than 1,000 firefighters in all were assigned to the blazes. A volunteer firefighter reportedly burned on the island was transported to a hospital in Athens.
“The most important thing is to not have any human casualties,” Interior Minister Takis Theodorikakos said in a telephone interview aired on state television.
Smoke from the Evia fire blanketed Athens in the morning. Authorities warned people in affected areas, particularly the elderly, young children and those suffering from breathing or heart conditions, to remain indoors and set air conditioning units to recycle indoor air.
The blaze broke out shortly after 3 a.m. local time, the civil protection authority said, and strong winds helped spread it through the dense pine forest.
More than 300 people from four villages were gradually evacuated during the day, many riding on buses and others going out in their own vehicles.
“The fire trapped us at Makrimalli, and we had to leave quickly,” said Nikos Petrou, referring to one of the villages that were ordered evacuated. “As I was leaving, the fire was coming behind us.”
Last year, more than 100 people died when a fast-moving forest fire broke out in a seaside area northeast of Athens and raged through a nearby settlement of mainly holiday homes.
