Greece fights forest fires near Athens
Updated 3 months ago5 new reports, including WELT, DIE ZEIT, tagesschau and 1 more.
The short version
Greece has been fighting severe forest fires west of Athens for days. More than 100 houses were destroyed, two pilots were killed in a collision of their firefighting helicopters.
Greece has been fighting severe forest fires west of Athens since August 2.1,2,5 More than 100 houses were destroyed by the fires.1 Around 500 firefighters and volunteers were deployed.2
Two firefighting helicopters collided during firefighting work, and two pilots died in the crash.2,4 The crew of one of the two helicopters was recovered dead.4 Extreme winds make extinguishing work from the air more difficult.4
One of the fires dangerously approached the city of Megara, west of Athens.5 The mayor of Megara spoke of a chaotic situation.5 The flames have covered a distance of 45 kilometres since erupting.6
There was support again from the air for the extinguishing work.6 Fire brigades from Europe support the Greek emergency services.3
Why it matters
The forest fires in Greece occur in the region northwest of Athens, a densely populated and wooded zone.1,2
Fire-fighting helicopters are used to fight fires in rough terrain, but are particularly at risk in strong winds.2,4
Megara is a city about 50 kilometers west of Athens, which has already been affected by forest fires in the past.5
This account was written from the 6 reports listed below, filed by 4 independent outlets, and checked against them line by line. It is not a copy of any one of them. Spotted an error? Tell us.
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