Wildfire approaches the seaside village of Limni, on the island of Evia, Greece, on August 6, 2021.
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Greece has been tackling devastating wildfires for seven days in different parts of the country amid the most severe heatwave in three decades.
Over the past week, temperatures reached 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) in some places, creating very dry conditions which have led to wildfires in some areas, destroying not only forest land, but also homes and businesses.
Hundreds of firefighters, including a number of teams sent from other nations, have focused their operations on four major blazes, according to national reports.
One of them is in Greece’s second biggest island, Evia, which has been burning for almost seven consecutive days. Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes on the island of Evia since last Tuesday, according to Reuters.
“We will change the way we launch protection projects, but also the way we do reforestation. We will focus all our attention on repairing the damage and our natural environment,” Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Twitter on Saturday, according to a Google translation.
More locals and tourists are evacuated from the island of Evia on Sunday.
Locals and tourists embark a ferry to transport them to mainland Greece, on the island of Evia, Greece, on Sunday, Aug. 8, 2021.
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Others sleep in their cars or by the beach while firefighters look to save homes.
A woman sleeps in her car on the beach as wildfire rages in Pefki village on Evia (Euboea) island.
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Locals support firefighters to rescue a burning house in Evia.
A firefighter and locals rush to a burning house in an attempt to extinguish forest fires that are approaching the village of Pefki on Evia (Euboea) island on August 8, 2021.
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Another resident tries to extinguish the fire in the village of Peyki, in Evia.
EVIA, GREECE – AUGUST 08: A resident tries to extinguish the fire in the village of Peyki, in the island of Evia on the fifth day of a wildfire on August 08, 2021.
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In the same island, a woman holds a dog as the fires spread.
A woman holds a dog in her arms as forest fires approach the village of Pefki on Evia (Euboea) island, Greece’s second largest island, on August 8, 2021.
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In some areas, the destruction is already clear. This is a burned house in Agios Stefanos on the outskirts of Athens.
The yard of a burned house following wildfire in Agios Stefanos on the outskirts of Athens, Greece, on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021.
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A volunteer walks among the wreckage of a house destroyed by wildfire, in Thrakomakedones, north of the capital of Athens.
A volunteer walks among the wreckage of a house destroyed by wildfire, in Thrakomakedones, north of Athens, Greece, on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021.
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Plantations have also been compromised on Agios Stefanos.
Burnt plant bulbs in a nursery following wildfires in Agios Stefanos on the outskirts of Athens, Greece, on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021.
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