Thousands of people have been evacuated from tourist resorts and villages on the Greek island of Crete as wildfires, fanned by strong winds, continue to burn. Approximately 8,000 individuals were evacuated overnight in Rethymno, where wind gusts reached 125km per hour.
The evacuations follow the deaths of two firefighters on Crete on Wednesday, identified as 58-year-old Emmanouil Stratidakis and 25-year-old Pantelis Diamantakis, who were trapped near Krya Vrysi. A third firefighter died near the Peloponnese port town of Gytheio. Both Stratidakis and Diamantakis are scheduled to be buried on Thursday.
The blaze in Rethymno, which began on Wednesday, has a front exceeding 15km (9.3 miles) and is burning out of control, reportedly destroying homes and agricultural land. Rethymno's deputy regional governor, Maria Lioni, stated that containing the fire is the main priority, noting that firefighting aircraft have been unable to fly on Thursday morning due to the strong winds.
Greece is among several European countries experiencing devastating fires and droughts amid extreme high temperatures. Forecasters warn that fire-prone conditions are expected to spread towards central Europe this week, with Greece and Turkey anticipated to be among the most affected areas.