As the summer holiday season winds down, UK travellers planning trips to Greece are facing a growing concern – the rapid spread of devastating wildfires across the country, particularly around the capital city of Athens. Over the past few days, a fast-moving wildfire has erupted just 35 km (20 miles) north of Athens, fueled by the hot, windy weather and quickly engulfing trees, houses, and cars. The situation has been described as a "biblical catastrophe" by the mayor of the historic town of Marathon, which was also forced to evacuate its 7,000 residents as the flames advanced towards the capital, just 40 km (25 miles) away.
“Our whole town is engulfed in flames and going through difficult times,” Stergios Tsirkas told Greece’s Skai television channel. The Greek government has responded with urgency, deploying hundreds of firefighters and numerous water-bombing planes and helicopters to battle the blaze. However, the strength of the winds and the challenging terrain have made the firefighting efforts extremely difficult.
Authorities have issued stark warnings to residents and tourists, advising them to stay indoors with windows shut due to the hazardous air quality caused by the fires. The situation has prompted the UK Foreign Office to issue travel warnings for holidaymakers heading to Greece, as the wildfires continue to ravage the region surrounding Athens. As the Olympic Games in Paris came to a close, the impact of the wildfires was felt even in the Greek capital.