Home

Rescuers search fire-devastated Greek areas as toll hits 81

Reading Time: 3 minutes

At least 81 people died in huge wildfires around Athens, Greek authorities have said as rescuers scoured scorched homes and burned-out cars for victims of one of the world’s deadliest fire outbreaks.

Scores of locals and holidaymakers fled to the sea to try to escape the flames as they tore through towns and villages near the capital stoked by 100-kilometre-per-hour wind gusts, devouring woodland and hundreds of buildings.

Greek media have described the disaster as a “national tragedy”, while Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras cut short a visit to Bosnia and announced three days of national mourning.

A young Irishman on honeymoon was among those who died, the British embassy in Greece confirmed.

According to British media, Brian O’Callaghan-Westropp had been on honeymoon in the coastal village of Mati when his car was caught in the wildfires.

Although his new wife Zoe managed to escape to a nearby beach, she was taken to hospital with burns, the reports said.

Fire service spokesperson Stavroula Maliri said Wednesday that 81 people were now known to have died. The toll surpasses the 77 people killed in the previous deadliest fires in Greece, on the southern island of Evia in 2007.

Apart from the Irishman, the victims included three other tourists, a Polish mother and her son, as well as a Belgian national whose teenage daughter survived the blaze.

Maliri said firefighters continued to search for bodies after receiving numerous calls reporting people missing.

It is possible that some of those unaccounted for “will be among the victims”, Maliri said.

She added that relatives of those missing had been asked to provide DNA samples to help authorities identify bodies.

When the fires broke out on Monday evening, terrified residents and tourists were overtaken by the flames in homes, on foot or in their cars. AFP photographers saw the burnt bodies of people and dogs.

Volunteers were also doing the rounds to provide food to those whose houses survived relatively unscathed but which have experienced sporadic power cuts since the fire struck.

Rain is forecast for the coming days, which will help efforts to douse the flames after temperatures topped 40 degrees Celsius.

But another blaze was threatening houses near the seaside town of Kineta, 25 kilometres west of Athens.

Dozens of firefighters were battling the flames around Kineta aided by helicopters and planes dropping thousands of gallons of water.

Some 187 people were hospitalised after Monday’s fires, with 71 still being treated on Wednesday, including almost a dozen children, most of whom were in a “serious condition”, the fire services said.

The wildfires come as record temperatures in northern Europe have also seen blazes cause widespread damage in recent days.

Author

MOST READ