Greece’s civil defense has ordered the evacuation of several towns in the northeastern suburbs of Athens, threatened by a raging fire that broke out on Sunday and is still spreading. The blaze threatening the historic Greek town of Marathon, 40 km north of Athens, continued to spread overnight, firefighters said, ordering new evacuations in the region. At least five towns were evacuated in the early hours of the morning, according to the Greek Civil Protection, which communicated with residents via SMSThousands of people were evacuated yesterday from at least eight towns surrounding Marathon and several homes were destroyed. Two hospitals in the city of Penteli, one pediatric and the other military, had to be evacuated and patients transferred to other facilities.. Some 510 firefighters were dispatched to the scene, and 152 vehicles and 29 planes flew over the area at dawn on Monday, he added. Smoke from the fires blanketed parts of Athens, amid a severe weather alert for the rest of the week.
At least 11 towns and villages northeast of Athens have been evacuated due to fires that led to the evacuation of the ancient city of Marathon yesterday, the daily Ekathimerini reports. The flames, fanned by strong winds, are burning trees, homes and cars. More than 560 firefighters, supported by 17 planes and 15 helicopters, are battling the blaze that broke out on Sunday near Varnavas – 35 km north of the capital – which this morning is affecting several fronts, including the village of Grammatiko, the city of Marathon itself, the seaside resort of Nea Makri and Mount Penteli near Athens.