Greek wildfires are worst in Europe in years, says EU-backed climate service

European Union-backed Copernicus Climate Change Service has said that wildfires in Greece are turning out to be largest recorded on European soil in years. The fires have burned for a seventh day as of Friday (August 25). They have destroyed tens of thousands of hectares of land in the northeast alone.

"Greece is going through the most difficult year, in terms of climatic conditions, in the history of recording and collecting meteorological data," government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis told a regular briefing.

He said that the firefighters were fighting 517 wildfiresthathad broken out across Greece since last Friday. The fires are fuelled by high temperature and sometimes gale force winds.

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Greece often witnesses summer wildfires. The government has said that conditions linked by scientists to climate change have made situation more intense this year.

"It is the combination of high temperatures, drought and winds that unfortunately create the ideal conditions for wildfires with extreme behaviour," Marinakis said.

"It is a very difficult summer."

In a poston social media platform X (formerly Twitter),Copernicus saidthat the wildfire in northeastern Greece that began on Saturday near the city of Alexandroupolis in northeastern Greece was "the largest recorded on European soil in years," burning a total of 72,344 hectares so far.

As of Friday, the fire was still burning.

Hundreds of people have had to flee their homes to escape the wildfires. Even hospital patients were briefly evacuated by a ferry earlier this week.

On Friday, authorities said that a charred body believed to be of a migrant was found in a forested area of Evros region. It is a region in northwestern part of the country.

This has brought total number of those who have been killed by the fire outbreak of the summer to 21. Almost all of them are presumed to be migrants. Eighteen bodies were found together, burnt beyond recognition, near the village of Avantas. The discovery was made on Tuesday.

79 arsonists arrested: Report

BBC has reported that Greek authorities have arrested 79 persons on the chargeof arson related to wildfires. Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias has said that arsonists have made several attempts to start new fires.

"You are committing a crime against the country," Kikilias said in a televised emergency briefing.

"Arsonist scum are setting fires that threaten forests, property and, most of all, human lives."

(With inputs from agencies)

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