Corfu and Eva have become the latest Greek islands to issue an evacuation order as the country grapples with devastating forest fires.
Corfu and Evia have become the latest Greek islands to issue an evacuation order as the country grapples with devastating forest fires.
Photos shared on social media show flames engulfing Corfu, which lies to the northwest off the coast of Greece.
A fire has broken out in the northern part of the island, which is a popular tourist destination. The destination has hundreds of thousands of visitors every year.
A fire brigade spokesman told AFP news agency that nearly 2,500 people had been evacuated from Corfu. According to him, houses and hotels have not been affected so far.
Giorgos Mahimaris, mayor of the northern region of Corfu, said the fire on the island is of criminal origin. He made this statement after visiting three fire-affected sites on Mount Pantokratoras.
Residents and tourists evacuated for safety reasons were taken to the Agios Markos stadium and Municipal Theater in Corfu, Mahimaris told state news agency APA-MPA.
Two helicopters and two fire brigade planes are in action.
Boats have been sent to transport residents by sea, a government official said.
In Evia, located on the east coast of Greece, residents of some regions have also received evacuation orders. Residents of four villages – Livadi, Potami, Pernaraki and Platanisto – were ordered to leave their homes as a precaution.
Rhodes in flames
The events in Corfu and Evia come after some 19,000 people were evacuated from the island of Rhodes, which was also affected by the fires.
About 16,000 people have been evacuated by land and 3,000 by sea on the island, according to local officials.
Rhodes has been battling the fires, which were fanned by strong winds since Tuesday (18/7), after smoke began to envelop tourist areas.
Many were forced to flee hotels as flames continued to spread across the Greek island.
Greece is facing a severe heatwave, with temperatures exceeding 40C across the country. Fires have been raging for almost a week in some areas.
A national holiday scheduled for Monday (24/7) has been canceled “given the extraordinary conditions prevailing in the country due to the fires,” the Greek presidency said.
Greece’s climate change and civil protection ministry said it was the “largest forest fire evacuation in the country”.
Thousands of tourists camped out at Rhodes airport on Sunday (23/7), waiting for a flight to depart from there.
Konstantia Dimoglidou, a spokeswoman for the Greek police, told AFP news agency that so far more than 30,000 people have been evacuated across the country.
Some tourists said they walked for miles in the searing heat to save themselves. Dead animals and burnt cars were seen on the roads.
At least three hotels were destroyed in the densely wooded area of ​​Kiotari, east of Rhodes.
Rhodes Deputy Mayor Athanasios Vyrinis said some people slept on cardboard boxes overnight and warned there were not enough essential supplies to meet the demand.
Greek firefighters have warned that the situation could worsen as more places have to be evacuated. The entity also stressed that the battle to contain the flames could last several days. A total of 260 firefighters, supported by 18 aircraft, worked on Sunday (7/23).
Six people were taken to hospital with respiratory problems. Subsequently, all were discharged.
According to experts, climate change increases the risk of hot, dry weather, which is likely to fuel more wildfires.
The world has already warmed by around 1.1°C since the start of the industrial age and temperatures will continue to rise unless governments around the world drastically reduce carbon emissions.
Spain and Italy are among the Mediterranean countries that have also experienced an intense heatwave in recent days, while parts of the United States have also experienced record temperatures.
Source: Terra
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