Devastating Wildfire Ravages Northeast Athens: A Wake-up Call

A massive wildfire northeast of Athens burned 104 square kilometers of land, destroyed homes and businesses, and prompted international assistance. The fire caused major damage and follows a pattern of increasing wildfires in the region due to successive heat waves and low rainfall. Inspections continue as recovery begins.

A European Union satellite mapping agency has reported that 104 square kilometers of land were burned northeast of Athens this week during a deadly wildfire. The wildfire gutted numerous homes and spurred multiple countries to send aid. The Copernicus Emergency Management Service provided the damage estimate on Wednesday, just a day after the fire was contained on the outskirts of the capital.

Tragically, a factory worker lost his life in the blaze, which ravaged mountainous areas and covered almost twice the size of Manhattan, enveloping Athens in a thick, choking smoke. Greek officials announced on Wednesday that the fire had damaged 22 businesses and made at least 78 homes uninhabitable, with almost half being completely destroyed. Inspections will continue in the days to come.

Aid flooded in from nine countries, including neighboring Turkey, to bolster ground crews and deploy water-dropping aircraft to fight the fire. This wildfire is the latest in a series of environmental crises following successive heat waves across southern Europe and a year of low rainfall. Recent estimates by the National Observatory of Athens indicate that over the past eight years, 450 square kilometers of forest have burned in the Attica region, which includes Athens—constituting 37% of the area's total forested landscape.

(With inputs from agencies.)