A fast-moving wildfire has prompted evacuations near Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city, after igniting on Saturday evening.
Residents of three small suburbs north of the city were ordered to leave their homes as the blaze spread rapidly.
The fire ignited in a ravine in a mountainous area around 8.30pm (1730 GMT) and spread quickly towards the plains, burning mostly through brush. While no residential properties have been damaged, several businesses were reportedly set alight, according to the country’s Fire Service.
Text alerts were sent to residents in Anthoupoli, Filothei, and Galini, urging them to evacuate.
Further evacuations included a facility housing 157 people with special needs. Those who could walk, about 120, were being sheltered in a gym, while the rest were housed in a psychiatric hospital, local authorities said.
Around midnight, the Fire Service announced that a 76-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of starting the fire. He “appeared not to be sober,” the Fire Service said.
Residents of Thessaloniki itself could see the flames and even heard explosions as flammable materials inside the businesses were set on fire. A heavy cloud of smoke blanketed several suburbs and western areas of the city itself.
About 115 firefighters and 38 fire engines battled the fire, plus an unknown number of volunteers, the Fire Service said. Firefighting planes briefly engaged, but they do not operate in the dark.
Thus far, there is no indication that the fire is directed at the city itself, but firefighters remain on alert, and more are expected to join. Strong winds blowing locally make it difficult to contain the fire.
Greece, with its long, hot, dry and often windy summers, is no stranger to wildfires. But it managed to get through June without serious damage. The first major wildfire hit on Wednesday in central Greece, killing a father and his 12-year-old son and prompting evacuations. Greece has also been spared, so far, the extreme heat that engulfed much of the rest of Europe.
Additional blazes were burning around Thessaloniki on Saturday, including in the Halkidiki Peninsula, a favoured vacation spot, and the city of Kilkis to the north.
