- 11-Day Wildfire Rages in Greece Despite Firefighting Efforts
- Largest EU Wildfire Recorded Since Data Collection Began in 2000
- International Assistance and Investigations into Arson Suspicions
A wildfire in Greece has been blazing for 11 days despite the efforts of firefighters. The country has requested assistance with firefighters and aircraft from other EU nations.
The largest EU blaze since records began is being fought by Greek firefighters.
Tuesday marked the eleventh consecutive day of fires in north-eastern Greece, despite the efforts of hundreds of firefighters. And a fleet of water-dropping aircraft from Greece and several other European nations.
The fire, which killed 20 of Greece’s 21 fire-related deaths last week, burned large forests and forced many to evacuate.
According to the European Commission, it is the “largest single blaze recorded” in the EU since the European Forest Fire Information System started collecting data in 2000.
The fire department reported six aircraft and four helicopters helping 475 ground personnel and 100 vehicles.
Another 260 firefighters and one helicopter battled a huge forest fire on Mount Parnitha’s southern slopes in Athens’ suburbs.
The 19 August Alexandroupolis and Evros fire was mostly inaccessible deep in a forest near the Turkish border.
More than 81,000 hectares (200,000 acres), an area larger than New York City, have been lost, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Emergency Management Service, which utilizes satellite imagery to provide mapping data.
With its resources gone, Greece asked help from other European nations and received 12 aircraft and hundreds of firefighters.
Under the EU’s emergency response mechanism, Germany, Sweden, Croatia, Cyprus, and the Czech Republic have dispatched firefighting aircraft, with France and Spain to follow.
Janez Lenarcic, the top EU official in charge of crisis management, stated on Tuesday that it was the bloc’s largest aerial firefighting operation and that it “demonstrates our commitment to swift and effective collective action in times of crisis.”
Authorities in Greece are investigating the causes of the fires, some of which have been suspected of being intentionally set.
Friday, police reported that 24 individuals had been detained for intentional arson, out of 163 individuals arrested on fire-related charges since the beginning of the fire prevention season.
