“NThere is no active front, the fires have been contained by firefighters, supported on Sunday by water bombers and helicopters who fought the fire in very dangerous conditions,” said Vassilis Vathrakoyamnis.
Fanned by strong winds of around 70 kilometres per hour, two forest fires broke out midday on Sunday in Keratea, a seaside resort near the capital, and in Stamata, a heavily wooded suburb at the foot of Mount Penteli north of Athens.
A 45-year-old man died of cardiac arrest while trying to escape the flames in Stamata, where several houses suffered significant material damage.
Today, 52 forest fires have been reported in Greece. The most difficult situation continues to unfold on the island of Chios in the Aegean Sea, where 142 firefighters, seven planes and three helicopters have been deployed, the same spokesman said.
Two firefighters were slightly injured during this operation, he added.
Greece is often hit by fires during the summer, but the situation is expected to be even more tense this year, after the mildest winter on record and the early heatwave in early June, with temperatures rising to 44 degrees Celsius in some places.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told a cabinet meeting that the country had entered “the heart of the fire season” and called on the population to actively contribute to “preventing” fires. On Sunday, he warned Greeks that “difficult times” await them.
June was characterized as “the hottest since 2010, with average monthly values up to 4.8 degrees Celsius above normal for the season”, the national meteorological service indicated on its portal.
Read Also: Fire near Athens and very high risk in 6 Greek regions
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Source: https://www.noticiasaominuto.com/mundo/2590491/incendios-nos-suburbios-de-atenas-foram-controlados
