Wildfires in Greece, unfortunately occur every summer season. Every Greek knows that high temperatures in combination with strong winds, often lead to wildfires. And this is what happens every summer again…
We keep our fingers crossed that the existing fires will come to an end soon, and that the remaining summer other forests and villages will be spared from wildfires.
Of course, it is advised to know how to react in case you find yourself close to a fire. Something we unfortunately never learn in school…but it is important!
In Greece, wildfires occur quite often . Most fires neither have many victims nor burn many houses down,
but they, unfortunately, destroy natural habitats and affect animal life.
However, when fires break out in densely populated areas, they cause many deaths, as happened on July 23, 2018, in Attica, Mati, near Athens.
These fires, Greece’s deadliest ones in over a decade, killed more than 90 people and caused injuries to more than 100 people.
Athens and Attica region
Unfortunately many wildfires occur around Athens, a region where half of Greece’s population lives.
Many of you will have also seen the images from Greece in the news every year, and once again in July-August 2026.
Our thoughts are with everyone living in the affected areas, and especially with those who have lost loved ones, homes, animals, land and animals.
The Attiki region, the province also Athens belongs to, was hit a lot once again in 2026, as you can see on the photo below.
The wildfires around Porto Germano, are huge, and roughly located between West Athens and the Canal of Corinth.
Wildfires Have Burned 42% of Attica’s Forests
Fifteen major wildfires since 2017 have burned more than 80,000 hectares across Attica, affecting roughly 32% of the region’s total area, according to data from Copernicus, EFFIS, and the National Observatory of Athens.
The impact on forests has been particularly severe. Around 51,200 hectares of forest have burned, approximately 42% of Attica’s total forested land.
The figures were updated following the recent major wildfire in Porto Germeno, highlighting the cumulative toll of repeated fires on the region over the past decade.
What to do in case of a wildfire close to you?
Since few people know what to do when a fire approaches their home or hotel, we provide you with information that could save lives in the future.
A fire brigade officer responded to two questions after the fires of 2018, and gives us pieces of advice that matter to us all:
1) How and why did the lethal fires of July 2018 happen?
2) What should one do in the event of a fire?
We hope you never find yourself near a fire, but if you do, take the above information into consideration and stay safe.
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