A forest fire fueled by strong winds near Corinth, in southwest Greece, continued to burn, this Thursday, July 23, for the second day in a row without causing any casualties but causing damage to homes, a- we learned from the firefighters. " The winds are force 6 Beaufort and the flames have caused material damage to a few homes, " an official told AFP.
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The firefighters reinforced their presence at the scene of the fire with a total of 268 firefighters and volunteers, helped by around forty trucks, three planes and six helicopters water bombers, according to the same source. At least four localities had been evacuated as a precaution Wednesday when the fire broke out at midday some 80 kilometers from Athens, in the Peloponnese. An establishment for the disabled as well as a holiday camp had also been evacuated, according to the Greek agency ANA.
Strong winds that had blown over Greece since Wednesday were making the work of firefighters more difficult. In addition, firefighters contained three other forest fires on Thursday in the Peloponnese and Crete.
During the summer, fires in Greece are frequent due to high temperatures, often exceeding 35 degrees Celsius, and high winds. Two years ago, on July 23, 2018, an unprecedented fire in the seaside resort of Mati, the deadliest in recent decades in Greece, left 102 people dead and charred most of the houses in this locality about thirty kilometers to the north. -est of Athens.