[ad_1]
ATHENS – Uncontrolled forest fires have left at least 60 people dead and dozens wounded in the country's most deadly region for more than a decade.
Fires were fired Monday afternoon. on both sides of Athens, tearing pine forests and resorts, forcing hundreds of residents and tourists to flee to the beaches, where they were taken care of by Coast Guard vessels and Marine.
The fires hit areas of unregulated and generalized construction where narrow streets made evacuation difficult and could have contributed to the number of deaths. The Greek Red Cross said the bodies of more than two dozen people suspected of attempting to escape were found near a beach, some of them dead. Kissing
. the forest, such as brush cutting, and weak zoning laws. Declines in public spending imposed during the country's financial crisis have compromised the funding of firefighters and firefighters are fighting against aging equipment. "The death toll is rising," said Evangelos Bournous, the mayor of Rafina, one of the cities affected by the floods. fires. "He has already passed 60".
Authorities said the number of casualties could increase significantly as rescue teams check the burned areas. In addition to the death toll, 94 remain hospitalized, including 23 children and 11 people in critical condition, said an official of the Greek Ministry of Health.
The Red Cross reported that 26 bodies were captured Tuesday morning in a field where they appeared to have been trapped. According to local sources, other bodies were discovered about 3 feet from the beach.
"These people were found trying to escape," said Red Cross chief Nicos Economopoulos to local media.
"It took people by surprise and everything happened very quickly," said deputy director of the ambulance service, Miltiadis Mylonas. "The task we face now is to organize the identification of victims by their family members."
Greek Prime Minister
Alexis Tsipras
Tuesday declared three days of mourning for the victims.
"The country is going through an indescribable tragedy," he said. "Today, Greece is in mourning, nothing and no one will be forgotten, nothing and nobody will be left unassisted by the state."
The Supreme Court prosecutor ordered an investigation into the deadly fires and Mr. Tsipras said that the government was planning an investigation since many fires raised suspicions of illegal behavior.
The Coast Guard said that a search and rescue operation is underway to 10 people, considered as foreign tourists, who fled fire in a boat and who disappeared.
Greece was particularly affected this year.Spain and Portugal, normally hot spots, were relieved by a rainy spring and cooler summer temperatures.Spain experienced a major fire on July 15 against 10 over the same period last year, when dry weather and high temperatures have burned the Iberian Peninsula
The Lisbon government has taken measures to prevent fires. More than 100 people died in the fires of last summer, some of whom were trapped in their car while they were trying to flee. Lisbon has responded by increasing investments and trying to eliminate flammable growth.
The number of deaths in Greece is the highest since 2007, when fires burned for several days in southern Peloponnese, killing more than 60 people
. The seaside resort of Mati, about 20 miles east of Athens, has been completely destroyed.
"Mati does not even exist as a village," said a woman who managed to escape. "I saw corpses, burned cars."
Greece has requested international aid throughout the European Union, while parts of Attica have declared the state of emergency. Spain and Cyprus offered assistance. Hundreds of firefighters from all over Greece have been redeployed and the army has been called to help them.
"Very saddened by the tragic forest fires in Greece", the President of the European Council Donald Tusk tweeted . "Europe will be held to our Greek friends in these difficult times.The help comes from several EU countries."
Mr. Tsipras spoke on the phone with several of his European counterparts and the Turkish president
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,
who expressed condolences and offered help, said the Prime Minister's Office in a statement.
Fires were still burning in several places near Attica on Tuesday morning and white smoke was emanating from others
Authorities said they would use an unmanned drone to monitor and track any activity suspicious such as arson.
Tuesday, the authorities said that the Athens International Airport, a main road and the port of Rafina normally operate after disturbances. Heavy rains are forecast for the Attica region as of Tuesday afternoon and will intensify on Wednesday, which the authorities hope to be able to control the fires.
-Jeannette Neumann in Madrid contributed to this article.
To Nektaria Stamouli at [email protected]
[ad_2]
Source link
