Man suffers burns as wildfire rages on Crete
A man was being treated for burns and breathing problems in a hospital in Crete as a wildfire raged out of control in the eastern part o the island on Saturday.
According to witnesses, the man fled his home in Mavros Kolymbos during an evacuation order but he is believed to have returned to the village to protect his house. He is being treated in the hospital’s ICU though the extend of his injuries was not immediately clear.
Earlier on Saturday, authorities ordered the evacuation of four residential settlements, the fire department said.
Fanned by strong winds, the blaze spread across the slopes of the mountainous forest east of the seaside town of Ierapetra.
Authorities ordered the precautionary evacuation of the Achlia, Galini, Agia Fotia and Mavros Kolimpos settlements, home to around 300 people, as the blaze got close to some homes.
About 120 firefighters were battling the blaze on the ground, assisted by two helicopters.
Wildfires are common in the Mediterranean nation during the summer months, but the government has said that extremely dry, windy and hot conditions that scientists link to climate change have made them worse in recent years.
Last year a wildfire burning in northeastern Greece for 11 days destroyed an area larger than New York City and killed 20 people.
[Reuters/Kathimerini]
