Wildfire burns through northern suburb of Greece’s capital Athens and residents are told to evacuate

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A wildfire burned through a northern suburb of the Greek capital of Athens on Saturday and some residents were ordered to evacuate, the country’s Fire Service reported.

Residents of the town of Kryoneri, 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) northeast of Athens received three SMS messages to evacuate to safe areas, Fire Service spokesman Vassilis Vathrakoyannis told reporters.

Greek media have shown houses on fire. The spokesman said “there have been reports of damages. We will take stock when the fires have been put out.”

“The real difficulties are ahead of us,” Vathrakoyannis said, adding that Greece has asked for six firefighting planes from the European Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism.

On site, 145 firefighters and 44 fire engines, 10 firefighting planes and seven helicopters are attempting to put out the fire, whose origin is unknown. Four ambulances are treating at least five residents, most of them elderly with respiratory problems.

Temperatures reaching, or exceeding, 38 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit), dry conditions and high winds are fanning the flames.

Under such conditions wildfires “expand very quickly and become dangerous. These conditions are expected to prevail over the coming days,” Vathrakoyannis said.

The fire service is also dealing with three other major fires in the southwest on Greece’s two largest islands — Crete in the south and Evia north of Athens — and also on the island of Kythera, northwest of Crete. At least 335 firefighters, 19 planes and 13 helicopters are involved, but can only operate in daylight. In total, 52 wildfires broke out across the country over the past 24 hours, the spokesman said.

Wildfires, many of them destructive, have become a common occurrence in Greece in recent years. Several have broken out in the past month.