WILDFIRE INFERNO
Rhodes declares ‘state of emergency’ as six other Greek regions under ‘extreme wildfire risk’ while blazes rage
A STATE of emergency has been declared in Rhodes as raging blazes continue to rip through the Greek holiday island.
It comes as authorities have warned six new regions in Greece face "extreme danger" of fresh wildfires.
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Forest fires have swept through Greece for eight days - with the worst in Rhodes and Corfu where thousands have fled the flames.
And the government today declared a state of emergency for the entirety of Rhodes.
The decision comes after authorities put six of Greece's 13 regions under "extreme risk" of fresh wildfires breaking out.
The Civil Protection Ministry has said that some areas of Attica, Central Greece, the Peloponnese region, Western Greece, Thessaly and Central Macedonia are most at risk.
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This includes Viotia, Evia, Fthiotida and Fokida in Central Greece, Argolida and Corinthia in Peloponnese, Achaia in Western Greece, Larissa and Magnesia in Thessaly, and Thessaloniki in Central Macedonia.
Meanwhile, officials say other areas in Crete, the Peloponnese, Ionian Islands, Western Greece, Thessaly, and Central Macedonia are also at very high risk of blazes.
These are Arkadia, Laconia and Messinia in the Peloponnese, Etoloakarnania and Ilia in Western Greece, Karditsa and Trikala in Thessaly, and Pieria, Imathia, Pella, Kilkis, Serres Halkidiki and Mount Athos in Central Macedonia.
In the last 24 hours, at least 53 fires have erupted in Greece.
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But fire officials assured the flames are being ";dealt with immediately" with "powerful ground and air forces".
It comes as the fire-ravaged country suffers another day of chaos as soaring temperatures could reach the mid-40's.
Authorities have banned outdoor work between midday and 5pm.
Greece's minister of labour Adonis Georgiadis said people who ignore the order will be slapped with a fine.
He tweeted: "Controls will be constant and the fines very high.
"We consider the health and safety of the workers our absolute priority.
"If the measures are followed, everything will be fine and another difficult day will pass."
The Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNNS) said
Authorities have also warned holidaymakers to stay inside and use air conditioners or fans to stay cool.
But there is set to be respite as the temperature is predicted to "drop significantly" by up to eight degrees on Thursday.
It comes as...
- Gran Canaria hit by wildfires
- Travel companies forced to cancel flights
- Defiant couple to fly to Corfu despite fires
- Inside devastated hotel in Rhodes
- Greece hols warning over 46C 'heat blast'
- Two dead as plane battling fires crashes
The HNNS said: "On Thursday the temperature is predicted to drop across the country by at least 6 to 8 degrees and will not exceed 35 to 37 degrees.
"While in Thrace, eastern Macedonia and the northeastern Aegean there will be sporadic storms accompanied by very strong northerly winds."
Up to 10,000 stranded Brits are waiting for news after wildfires engulfed their hotels in Rhodes.
More than 20,000 have so far fled the Greek fires, the worst on record as the inferno spread after charring swathes of land and damaging buildings.
Mercy flights back to the UK continued yesterday and will resume again today with thousands of Brits still stranded.
Tour operator TUI said it had cancelled all holidays until July 31.
But those with holidays booked in the south eastern corner of Rhodes are likely to face heartbreak for much longer.
Jet2 said it had cancelled flights to Rhodes up to and including July 30.
It has operated ten flights to the UK from Rhodes, including four repatriation flights and six scheduled flights.
A spokesman said: “We continue to fly aircraft to Rhodes with no customers aboard, so that we can bring our customers back to the UK on their scheduled flights, as well as any additional Jet2 customers who wish to return to the UK.”
It comes after two air force pilots died when their plane clipped a tree and crashed while battling a wildfire on Tuesday.
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Horror footage showed the aircraft plunging into a hillside near Platanistos at the southern tip of Evia island - killing Christos Moulas, 34, and Periklis Stefanidis, 27.
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