ATHENS: Firefighters in Greece were battling flames for a ninth consecutive day on Sunday, as more areas of the country’s north were ordered to evacuate their homes.

The largest fire is devastating the region of Evros, near the port town of Alexandroupoli and the country’s border with Turkiye. On Sunday, residents of the areas of Lefkimmi in Evros and Kassitera, in the neighbouring region of Rhodopes, were ordered to evacuate their homes.

The deputy regional governor of Evros, Dimitris Petrovic, told public television channl ERT that it was a “very difficult situation” that had caused enormous damage.

The region had launched a new appeal for reinforcements and resources, he said, adding that the winds were set to change from Monday. “We don’t know how and if we will be able to stop the advance of the fire’s frontline,” he said.

Since the fire started last Saturday 20 people believed to be migrants, including two children, have been found dead in the area.

The Evros region is a regular entry point for migrants from neighbouring Turkiye, and local border guards had warned that more asylum-seekers could have been trapped by the fires.

An elderly shepherd died in another fire in Boeotia, north of Athens on Monday.

The fire was also consuming the Dadia forest, one of the major sanctuaries in Europe for birds of prey.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2023