Seich Sou blaze brought under control

Firefighters, aided by six water-dropping aircraft (including a Russian Beriev Be-200, with a capacity of 12 tons) and two helicopters, battled a wildfire in the Seich Sou forest in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Tuesday. Authorities evacuated the Philippion Hotel as a precaution while black smoke from the fire was visible from the northern port city. The blaze was brought under control late in the afternoon. It was not known what caused the fire. Greece is plagued by wildfires every summer, fanned by high temperatures, dry weather and strong winds. A new heatwave is expected to push temperatures to 40 Celsius (104F) over the next few days. [Sooc]