Maria da Piedade Maniatoglou, 67, told the Lusa agency by phone that the heat is intense and that authorities have already made several spaces available, such as the Athens Olympic Stadium, to accommodate those who had to leave their homes, those who need to escape the smoke, or simply cool off with the help of air conditioning.
As in previous years, the rise in temperature has been accompanied by the occurrence of several fires, some of them reaching the outskirts of the capital, Athens.
A fire that broke out on Thursday near the village of Varnava, about 40 kilometers north of Athens, spread rapidly southward during the night to the village of Penteli, about 15 kilometers north of the capital and at the edge of the city’s urban fabric.
As a result of the fires spreading rapidly due to strong winds and vegetation conducive to such conditions, authorities ordered the evacuation of eight villages south of Mount Penteli early this morning, following the same measure involving 15 other villages further north, evacuated on Sunday, affecting a total of 35,000 people.
Maria da Piedade Maniatoglou indicated that, especially on Sunday, the sky was very dark due to smoke, and the smell of burning was noticeable. “People living in the outskirts of the city are experiencing very difficult situations. Aerial resources had to stop during the night, and during that period, the fires continued to advance. It’s very complicated,” she said.
Greece is one of Europe’s main tourist destinations, currently hosting thousands of tourists, including Portuguese visitors. The presence of Portuguese tourists is visible on the islands and in the capital, Athens.
Last year, the fires that occurred affected several Portuguese families, and some reported harrowing ordeals to escape the flames and reach safety. The largest evacuation operation ever carried out in Greece due to fires took place in July on the tourist island of Rhodes.
Maria da Piedade Maniatoglou, who is accustomed to high summer temperatures, stated that she doesn’t remember such a hot season. “It’s being an extremely dry summer, it hasn’t rained for months, the winds are strong and help the flames. Houses have already burned, but fortunately, there are no casualties reported yet.”
According to firefighters, in the last 24 hours, about 40 fires occurred in Greece, most of which (33) were extinguished before they could spread.
