Village evacuated over forest fire in southern Greece

ATHENS: Authorities evacuated a village after a forest fire broke out on Sunday near the seaside town of Xylokastro in the Peloponnese region of southern Greece, firefighters said.

An arsenal of 15 vehicles, seven water bombers and three helicopters were deployed to battle the blaze, whose “long front” has made it “difficult to control”, a firefighter spokeswoman told AFP.

The Greek civil protection service sent an evacuation message to the residents of Pyrgos, which is located near the wildfire.

A total of 27 forest fires have erupted across Greece in the last 24 hours, most of which were brought under control, the spokeswoman said.

Greek authorities triggered a red warning in several regions for Sunday and Monday due to winds of up to 75 kilometres per hour.The Mediterranean country, prone to drought and heatwaves, experienced the worst forest fire in its history in August, northeast of the capital Athens, with thousands evacuated and one dead.

Scientists have long warned that human-induced climate change is driving longer-lasting, more intense and more frequent heatwaves, along with other extreme weather events.