The fire ignites again Greece. Firefighters found on Tuesday the charred bodies of at least 26 people in a new wave of fires in the Hellenic country. The rescue teams believe that they could be migrants who were in the forest of Dadiain the northeast of Greece and near the border with Türkiye. Added to the balance of fatalities is the lifeless body found on Monday in the same region.
According to the Greek newspaper ‘Skai’, the firefighters initially found 18 bodies in the Avanda area and later, eight more bodies in the Lefkimmi area. Both places are located in the Dadia forest. “Since no disappearances have been reported in the surrounding areas, the possibility that they are people who entered the country illegally is being investigated,” said Giannis Artopoios, spokesman for the fire department.
The greek police has activated a victim reconnaissance team and has begun to investigate what happened. Several towns in the area have been evacuated due to the proximity of the flames, fueled by high temperatures, dryness and strong winds. In addition, text messages calling for evacuation were sent to mobile devices in the affected territory, including those on foreign networks.
The authorities fear that in the coming days increase the death toll in the dense forest of Dadia, as it is a common passage area for migrants crossing the borders from Türkiye.
on red alert
The fire situation in greece It worsened this Tuesday after more than 50 new outbreaks were declared in 24 hours. Although many of the fires have been controlled, there are at least eight large fires in different parts of the countrythe most serious is the one that began on Saturday near the Greek port city of Alexandroupoli. “The city itself is under a rain of ashes, and the flames are getting closer and closer,” state television ERT described the situation this morning, while the newspaper “Kathimerini” defined the situation as “hell.”
The proximity of the flames forced the evacuation of the main hospital in Alexandroupoli and 90 of the 204 patients, including several babies, were transferred to a ferry docked in the port of the city, located about 25 kilometers from the border with Turkey. According to ERT, some explosions were heard in the hospital compound, probably due to the explosion of oxygen tanks and other devices.
For their part, the regions of Attica, Central Greece and Peloponnese are in Red alert due to the danger of new fires due to high temperatures and wind.
fenced hospital
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In the last few hours, two firefighters have been slightly injured while trying to contain a fire that threatened homes in the town of Dialekto, in the city of Kavala, also in the northeast. “The last 48 hours, unfortunately like the next 48, are exceptionally critical due to strong winds and high temperatures that are creating extensive fronts of fire,” Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Vasilis Kikilias said. The forces that fight the fire have been reinforced in the last hours with the presence of more than 200 firefighters and the Army has also been deployed in the place. Likewise, the European Union (EU) deployed on Monday two planes from Cyprus and a team of Romanian firefighters to fight the fires in Alexandroupolis, through the community civil protection mechanism.
The smoke clouds caused by the fire are of such a size that they can be recognized on satellite images, according to the Kathimerini newspaper. The high temperatures, the environmental dryness and the winds, which increase the risk of fires, will persist in Greece until Friday, according to the meteorological services. Back in July, a fire fueled by strong winds razed nearly 18,000 hectares in ten days in the rhodes islandforcing the evacuation of some 20,000 people.
Portugal, France and Italy, on red alert
Portugal and Italy They are also registering fires in recent days that worry the authorities, due to the weather conditions, which are more than conducive to the spread of the flames. In Portugal, more than 100 firefighters and 10 planes were fighting Tuesday to control a fire that broke out Monday night in the northern city of Baiao. In addition, more than 120 municipalities in the north and center, as well as some parts of the Algarve, have been put on alert due to the high risk of fires due to the heat wave.
In Italy, some 700 people had to be evacuated after the flames broke out on the island of Elba, where some 14 hectares have burned. The Government has decreed a red alert for high temperatures in 16 of the 27 main cities, including Rome, Milan and Florence.
For their part, four regions in the south of France are under red alert and has been restricted access to Mont Blanc. The thermometer is expected to reach 42 degrees in the Rhone Valley in the next 48 hours.