[ad_1]
In some areas, wind speeds exceeded 95 kilometers per hour.
Firefighters in Greece’s Peloponnese on Friday battled wildfires that continued to spread due to strong winds, forcing local authorities to evacuate several threatened villages, TASR reported, according to AFP.
In the south of the peninsula, 150 to 250 kilometers southwest of Athens, they recorded at least four large fires. Dozens of firefighters also tried to put out the flames near the power plant near the city of Megalopoli, while 12 vehicles, six planes and two helicopters intervened. “The conditions are extremely difficult. Wind speeds in some areas exceeded 95 kilometers per hour,” said Vassilis Vathrakogiannis, spokesman for the National Fire and Rescue Service. In total, they have recorded “45 fires across the country,” the spokesman added.
Greek authorities have warned since Wednesday of an increased risk of fires in parts of the country due to strong winds and high temperatures, which reached 40 degrees Celsius in some areas. Two villages and three private schools near the city of Koropi were evacuated on Wednesday because of the fire, which is 30 kilometers from the capital.
Greece is preparing for the summer fire season weeks in advance. After the warmest winter in history, the earliest heat wave arrived in Greece last week. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of the United Nations explained that rising temperatures lead to a longer fire season, which results in a larger area being affected by fires.
Support independent journalism with a 50% discount on an Aktuality Plus subscription All year round and get Petr Bárdy’s new book Zuzana Čaputová – Human courage At a discounted price.
[ad_2]
Source link
