Fire leaves trail of eco-destruction

View of a partially burned forest following a wildfire, near the village of Avantas in the region of Evros, northeastern Greece. Firefighters were working on three fronts on Tuesday to extinguish the fire blazing in Evros. The fire department’s projection of a change in wind direction to the south is increasing concern of the risk of the flames approaching settlements. On the other hand, Alexandroupoli Mayor Yiannis Zampoukis emphasized that the fire was moving away from the city due to a shift in winds. More than 74,000 hectares in Evros and Rhodopi were estimated to have been burned. However, a certain count of the damage can only be made after the fire is fully extinguished. The fire had been burning in the region for 10 days. [Alexandros Avramidis/Reuters]