Wildfire in southern Greece leaves 2 people dead

Two people died overnight in a large wildfire burning through forestland in Greece, near a seaside resort in the country’s south, authorities said.

The fire service said about 350 firefighters, assisted by 18 water-dropping aircraft, managed to largely bring the blaze near Xylokastro in the Peloponnese region under control early on Monday.

Scattered fires burned in the area but the initial large front had been put out, officials said.

Half a dozen villages were ordered evacuated overnight as a precaution after the blaze broke out on Sunday. There was no threat to Xylokastro. The flames were fanned by very strong winds blowing through forests left tinder-dry by a warm spring and hot summer attributed to climate change.

Authorities said the two dead men were believed to be local residents who were declared missing late Sunday. No one else was reported missing. There were no immediate reports of burned homes in the affected area, located some 150 kilometers (93 miles) southwest of Greece’s capital, Athens.

Another wildfire near Andravida, in the western Peloponnese was also brought under control on Monday, but firefighters remained on alert in the area for flareups, the fire service said.

Greece, like other southern European countries, is plagued by destructive wildfires every summer that have been exacerbated by global warming. Over the past few months, authorities have had to cope with more than 4,500 wildfires in countryside left parched by a protracted drought and early summer heatwaves , in what was considered the most dangerous fire season in two decades.

A big investment in extra water-bombing aircraft, warning drones and other equipment have enabled firefighters to extinguished most blazes shortly after they broke out. However, in August, a ferocious wildfire swept through the mountains north of Athens , destroying scores of homes and killing one person.

Still, authorities say this summer’s expanses that have been burned are about 25% less in size than the annual average of the past 20 years. [AP]