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Amid the prolonged heat wave in Europe, a forest fire in Greece threatened the archaeological site of the birthplace of the modern Olympic Games.
Civil Protection Minister Michalis Chrisochoidis said that firefighters launched an “overnight fight” on Wednesday night to protect the site from fires in the southern Peloponnese area near Ancient Olympia.
“We will continue to fight for a whole day to contain all fronts and put out the fire. The conditions are difficult,” Chrisochoidis said on Thursday.
The venue has been hosting the Olympic Games every four years since 776 BC, which lasted for more than a thousand years.
Regional Governor Nektarios Farmakis told national television that it was “temporarily preserved” but warned that the danger was “not over yet.”
He hopes to control the fire through helicopters and firefighting aircraft.
In 2007, the same area was ravaged by wildfires, killing dozens of people, but the stadiums and temples in Olympia survived.
The fire department said that 174 firefighters, 9 ground teams, 52 cars, two underwater aircraft and four helicopters are fighting the fire that broke out on Wednesday.
Described as the worst heat wave in Greece since 1987, extreme weather phenomena have been roasting the country for more than a week and are expected to last at least until Sunday.
It raised the temperature to 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) and created dry conditions in the bushes and forests.
Wildfire scorches Turkey
Neighboring countries are facing similar situations, causing deadly and widespread wildfires in Turkey and fires in Italy and throughout the Mediterranean.
Albanian officials said that at least one person died of smoke inhalation near the southern city of Gjirokaster.
In Turkey, a Wildfire Arrived at the compound of a coal-fired power plant in the southwest, forcing residents to flee by boat and car, and was brought under control on Thursday after raging for about 11 hours.
But others continue to burn.
Turkey’s worst wildfire in decades burned for 9 days in intense heat, low humidity and changing strong winds. So far, the fire has killed at least eight people and countless animals.
An EU disaster response organization stated that EU member states are sending firefighters and water drop planes to Italy, Greece, Albania and North Macedonia.
The European Union Atmospheric Monitoring Agency stated that the smoke from wildfires in the area is clearly visible in satellite images, which also shows that the intensity of wildfires in Turkey is at the highest level since records were recorded in 2003.
Experts warn that climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of wildfires in the region.
Greek military expands its efforts
From Tuesday night to Wednesday night, more than 100 wildfires broke out in Greece in 24 hours.
Defense Minister Nicolas Panaggiotopoulos said on Thursday that the armed forces will expand their role by conducting ground and air patrols in areas prone to wildfires.
He said that air patrols are carried out by manned and unmanned aircraft.
“Armed forces always show up in difficult times, and so are now,” Panaggiotopoulos said.
A fire that broke out on Tuesday destroyed forests on the island of Evia, close to mainland Greece, and caused the village to be evacuated. The Coast Guard evacuated nearly 90 people from the beach.
More than 160 firefighters, three aircraft and three helicopters, as well as five ground teams and 57 vehicles were deployed to Evia to fight the wildfires.
The French Civil Defense Agency stated that 40 French firefighters and 8 tons of materials had traveled to Greece to assist Evia late Wednesday.
North of the Greek capital, Forest fire Dozens of houses were burned down and thousands of people were forced to flee and continue to burn.
The fire that started on Tuesday no longer threatens inhabited areas, but is still destroying the forested area at the foot of Mount Panisa. Forty firefighters from Cyprus joined the ranks of Greek colleagues in the fire.
Greek scientists said that Greece’s total damage in just three days this month exceeded 50% of the country’s average burned area in previous years.
A report from the Athens Observatory stated that between Sunday and Wednesday, an estimated 6,000 hectares (14,800 acres) were shrouded in smoke, compared with 10,400 hectares (25,700 acres) for the whole of last year.
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