Destructive wildfire burns near Greece capital
By
Maura Kelly, AccuWeather meteorologist
Published May 21, 2021 7:14 PM EDT
|
Updated May 24, 2021 1:41 PM EDT
About 300 firefighters answered the call to action to battle a large forest fire burning on the Geraneia Mountains near Kato Alepochori, Greece, on May 20.
Hot and dry conditions during the beginning of May set the stage for an intense wildfire burning near the capital city of Greece. As firefighters continued into their third day of battling the blaze that sparked west of Athens, AccuWeather meteorologists warned that they may not get much help from Mother Nature.
The wildfire began late Wednesday and has since burned more than nearly 9,900 acres (4,000 hectares) of the forest in the Corinth region of southern Greece, Civil Protection head Nikos Hardalias announced on Friday.
Fire burns among houses during a wildfire in the village of Schinos, near Corinth, Greece, late Wednesday, May 19, 2021. A large wildfire west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. Fire Service officials said eight water-dropping planes and three helicopters were involved to try and contain the blaze some 70 kilometers (45 miles) west of Athens, outside the resort town of Loutraki. (AP Photo/Valerie Gache)
Hundreds were forced to flee from their homes on Thursday after authorities issued evacuation orders for 18 settlements, including homes, vacation homes, two Orthodox Christian monasteries and one convent, according to the Associated Press. Three more settlements and a monastery were evacuated overnight as firefighters struggled to contain the advancing flames.
The fire wreaked havoc across the area, damaging or destroying dozens of homes, causing power outages, and damaging boats as it reached the coast in some areas.
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Brisk westerly winds on Thursday carried smoke from the fire across southern Greece and as far as the vacation islands in the Aegean Sea. The capital city of Athens was shrouded in smoke, obscuring the view of the ancient citadel Acropolis, the AP reported.
These gusty winds also made battling the blaze difficult for the more than 300 crew members, including firefighters, ground teams, members of the military and volunteers, battling the blazes.
A firefighting airplane drops water near the village of Alepochori , Greece, on Friday, May 21, 2021. A large wildfire burning for a second day west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
On Thursday, 17 planes and three helicopters dropped water from the air in an attempt to help control the blaze. Air support had to be halted as night fell, but at first light on Friday 21 planes and helicopters returned to the sky, according to the AP.
Despite the ongoing battle in harsh “exceptionally difficult circumstances,” the crews were able to to prevent the flames from reaching a wildlife refuge to the south of the fire, and from spreading east into the the nearby town of Megara, Hardalias announced.
Over the weekend, experts warned that this fire could lead to “ecological disaster on an immense scale.”
Euthymios Lekkas, professor of environmental disaster management at the University of Athens, stated that the fire late last week and over the weekend burned more than 21 square miles (55 square km) of pine forest, farmland and other land, the Guardian reported.
“It’s a huge ecological disaster that needs work to avoid landslides and terrible flooding in the autumn,” Lekkas added.
These difficult circumstances were created by a couple of factors that have created conditions conducive for fire to spread quickly.
A damaged boat from a wildfire, at a port in the village of Vamvakies, Corinth, Greece, Thursday, May 20, 2021. A large wildfire west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. Fire Service officials said eight water-dropping planes and three helicopters were involved to try and contain the blaze some 70 kilometers (45 miles) west of Athens, outside the resort town of Loutraki.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
A small storm swept through southeastern Europe late last week helped to kick up winds across the region, with gusts as high as 37 mph (60 km/h) near Corinth. While this storm brought wet weather to northern Greece, rainfall did not reach far enough south to aid firefighters in the Corinth region.
In addition to gusty winds, dry conditions across the country have allowed vegetation to dry out, providing plenty of fuel for any fires that spark, and allowing some fires to reignite after being contained by firefighters.
According to the Guardian, the civil protection agency announced that the blaze was apparently started by someone burning vegetation in an olive grove near the village of Schinos.
AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys explained that since Jan. 1, 2021, Greece has received near- to above-normal precipitation, but largely dry conditions have been in place across the country between April 25 and May 15.
He added that there has been some recent rain, but not enough to put a dent in the overly dry conditions.
Firefighter try to extinguish the blazes during a wildfire near the village of Schinos, near Corinth, Greece, late Wednesday, May 19, 2021. A large wildfire west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. Fire Service officials said eight water-dropping planes and three helicopters were involved to try and contain the blaze some 70 kilometers (45 miles) west of Athens, outside the resort town of Loutraki.(AP Photo/Valerie Gache)
"The other key factor that played a role is Greece went through a heat wave at the start of the month with widespread upper 80s into mid-90s Fahrenheit (31-35 C)," said Roys, adding that towns on Crete reached the upper 90s F (35-37 C).
"The dry weather will continue this weekend with temperatures expected to rise to around 80 degrees F (27 degrees C)," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Rob Richards. "Unfortunately, no end in the dry and warm weather is in sight and it will turn hot by next week."
Roys expected temperatures to keep rising next week with temperatures once again reaching into the 90s F (32-37 C).
"This is going to be dangerous," he warned.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Severe Weather
Destructive wildfire burns near Greece capital
By Maura Kelly, AccuWeather meteorologist
Published May 21, 2021 7:14 PM EDT | Updated May 24, 2021 1:41 PM EDT
About 300 firefighters answered the call to action to battle a large forest fire burning on the Geraneia Mountains near Kato Alepochori, Greece, on May 20.
Hot and dry conditions during the beginning of May set the stage for an intense wildfire burning near the capital city of Greece. As firefighters continued into their third day of battling the blaze that sparked west of Athens, AccuWeather meteorologists warned that they may not get much help from Mother Nature.
The wildfire began late Wednesday and has since burned more than nearly 9,900 acres (4,000 hectares) of the forest in the Corinth region of southern Greece, Civil Protection head Nikos Hardalias announced on Friday.
Fire burns among houses during a wildfire in the village of Schinos, near Corinth, Greece, late Wednesday, May 19, 2021. A large wildfire west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. Fire Service officials said eight water-dropping planes and three helicopters were involved to try and contain the blaze some 70 kilometers (45 miles) west of Athens, outside the resort town of Loutraki. (AP Photo/Valerie Gache)
Hundreds were forced to flee from their homes on Thursday after authorities issued evacuation orders for 18 settlements, including homes, vacation homes, two Orthodox Christian monasteries and one convent, according to the Associated Press. Three more settlements and a monastery were evacuated overnight as firefighters struggled to contain the advancing flames.
The fire wreaked havoc across the area, damaging or destroying dozens of homes, causing power outages, and damaging boats as it reached the coast in some areas.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Brisk westerly winds on Thursday carried smoke from the fire across southern Greece and as far as the vacation islands in the Aegean Sea. The capital city of Athens was shrouded in smoke, obscuring the view of the ancient citadel Acropolis, the AP reported.
These gusty winds also made battling the blaze difficult for the more than 300 crew members, including firefighters, ground teams, members of the military and volunteers, battling the blazes.
A firefighting airplane drops water near the village of Alepochori , Greece, on Friday, May 21, 2021. A large wildfire burning for a second day west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
On Thursday, 17 planes and three helicopters dropped water from the air in an attempt to help control the blaze. Air support had to be halted as night fell, but at first light on Friday 21 planes and helicopters returned to the sky, according to the AP.
Despite the ongoing battle in harsh “exceptionally difficult circumstances,” the crews were able to to prevent the flames from reaching a wildlife refuge to the south of the fire, and from spreading east into the the nearby town of Megara, Hardalias announced.
Over the weekend, experts warned that this fire could lead to “ecological disaster on an immense scale.”
Euthymios Lekkas, professor of environmental disaster management at the University of Athens, stated that the fire late last week and over the weekend burned more than 21 square miles (55 square km) of pine forest, farmland and other land, the Guardian reported.
“It’s a huge ecological disaster that needs work to avoid landslides and terrible flooding in the autumn,” Lekkas added.
These difficult circumstances were created by a couple of factors that have created conditions conducive for fire to spread quickly.
A damaged boat from a wildfire, at a port in the village of Vamvakies, Corinth, Greece, Thursday, May 20, 2021. A large wildfire west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. Fire Service officials said eight water-dropping planes and three helicopters were involved to try and contain the blaze some 70 kilometers (45 miles) west of Athens, outside the resort town of Loutraki.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
A small storm swept through southeastern Europe late last week helped to kick up winds across the region, with gusts as high as 37 mph (60 km/h) near Corinth. While this storm brought wet weather to northern Greece, rainfall did not reach far enough south to aid firefighters in the Corinth region.
In addition to gusty winds, dry conditions across the country have allowed vegetation to dry out, providing plenty of fuel for any fires that spark, and allowing some fires to reignite after being contained by firefighters.
According to the Guardian, the civil protection agency announced that the blaze was apparently started by someone burning vegetation in an olive grove near the village of Schinos.
AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys explained that since Jan. 1, 2021, Greece has received near- to above-normal precipitation, but largely dry conditions have been in place across the country between April 25 and May 15.
He added that there has been some recent rain, but not enough to put a dent in the overly dry conditions.
Firefighter try to extinguish the blazes during a wildfire near the village of Schinos, near Corinth, Greece, late Wednesday, May 19, 2021. A large wildfire west of Athens damaged homes and prompted evacuations as it tore through rugged forest terrain. Fire Service officials said eight water-dropping planes and three helicopters were involved to try and contain the blaze some 70 kilometers (45 miles) west of Athens, outside the resort town of Loutraki.(AP Photo/Valerie Gache)
"The other key factor that played a role is Greece went through a heat wave at the start of the month with widespread upper 80s into mid-90s Fahrenheit (31-35 C)," said Roys, adding that towns on Crete reached the upper 90s F (35-37 C).
"The dry weather will continue this weekend with temperatures expected to rise to around 80 degrees F (27 degrees C)," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Rob Richards. "Unfortunately, no end in the dry and warm weather is in sight and it will turn hot by next week."
Roys expected temperatures to keep rising next week with temperatures once again reaching into the 90s F (32-37 C).
"This is going to be dangerous," he warned.
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Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
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