by & nbspgavin Blackburn & nbspwith & nbspAP
It’s published
Hundreds of aircraft-backed firefighters were fighting an out-of-control wildfire on the third day on Chios Island, Eastern Greece. Authorities issued multiple evacuation orders.
The towering walls of flames ripped apart the forests and farmlands of the island where authorities declared a state of emergency and sent firefighters from Athens, the northern city of Thessaloniki, and nearby Lesbos Island.
By Tuesday morning, the fire department said it was working on a front line flame scattered with 444 firefighters with 85 vehicles. Eleven helicopters and two water-dropping planes provided air support.
Emergency Services issued an evacuation order for villages in the area from Sunday, when a fire broke out near a major town on the island.
The fire department sent an arson investigation team to Chios to find out the cause of the flames.
“We are facing fires simultaneously across multiple geographically connected parts of the island, a pattern that cannot be considered by chance,” said Giannis Kefaloziannis, Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, on Monday.
Authorities are “extremely seriously considering the possibility of organized criminal activity, that is, arson,” he said.
The minister said police on the island had been strengthened, but military patrols had doubled.
“Anyone who thinks he can play with the lives of his citizens and create confusion with planned actions will be led to court,” Kefarothiannis said. “Arson is a serious crime and it will be dealt with that.”
During the hot and dry summers, wildfires occur frequently in Greece.
In 2018, a massive fire blew through the seaside town of Matty, east of Athens, trapping people in the homes and roads they tried to escape.
More than 100 people have died, including those who were drowned in an attempt to get away from the flames.
