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Greece in the 2021 heatwave: Firefighters battle a forest fire near the village of Lampiri, west of Patras
Photo: Andreas Alexopoulos / dpa
A suburb of Athens has been evacuated because of forest fires fanned by strong winds.
The Greek civil defense called on the residents of Ano Vuola and neighboring areas to leave their homes as the flames had almost reached a residential area.
A total of 72 firefighters with 20 fire engines were deployed in the town south of the Greek capital.
They were supported by six firefighting planes and two helicopters.
The operation was made more difficult by sometimes violent gusts of wind.
According to local media, there was a power outage in the region.
The mayor of the municipality of Glyfada, where the fire broke out, told ANA-MPA news agency that the fire started at an electric power station.
Last year, more than 100,000 hectares of forest and agricultural land went up in flames in Greece.
At that time, the country experienced the most severe heat wave in decades, which experts attributed to climate change.
Last Thursday, the European Commission decided to send more than 200 firefighters from other EU countries to Greece to help the country fight forest fires.
German firefighters are also taking part in the support mission as part of the EU civil protection mechanism.
hpi/AFP
