Emergency meeting called over Attica blaze
The deputy governor of East Attica called an emergency meeting of civil protection authorities on Wednesday evening to discuss and coordinate the response to a large wildfire that broke out earlier in the day in Kalyvia, southeast of the Greek capital.
Thanasis Avgerinos called the meeting as at least six villages and towns in the area – including the popular seaside resort of Anavyssos – have been evacuated and local authorities say that several homes have been destroyed by the blaze.
Gale-force winds continued to stoke the flames and shift the blaze’s direction, meanwhile, as water-dumping airplanes and helicopters lent their support to firefighters on the ground before nightfall forces them to retire for the night.
In the meantime, fire chief Stefanos Kolokouris has sent a team of arson investigators to the site of the wildfire’s origin.
