"Greece is going through the most difficult year, in terms of climatic conditions, in the history of recording and collecting meteorological data," government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis told a regular briefing.
Fire crews were battling 517 wildfires that had broken out across Greece since last Friday, he said, fuelled by high temperatures and in some cases gale force winds. While summer wildfires are common in Greece, the government says conditions, which scientists link to climate change have made them more intense this year.
"It is the combination of high temperatures, drought and winds that unfortunately create the ideal conditions for wildfires with extreme behaviour," Marinakis said.In a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, Copernicus said the wildfire in northeastern Greece that began on Saturday near the city of Alexandroupolis in northeastern Greece was "the largest recorded on European soil in years," burning a total of 72,344 hectares so far.
A wildfire that broke out on Tuesday outside Athens had abated by Friday, after destroying homes and a car in the area and forcing people to flee, often on foot.