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Fire

Fires threaten Athens' hillside suburbs for second day


The Independent (UK)
Wed, 20 Jul 2022 18:41 UTC
fire
Nearly 500 firefighters struggled to contain a large wildfire that threatened hillside suburbs outside Athens for a second day Wednesday, after hundreds of residents were evacuated overnight.

At least two people were hospitalized with breathing problems and minor burns, while local officials said several houses had been burned in the fire around Mount Penteli, 25 kilometers (16 miles) northeast of the Greek capital.

"The conditions are very challenging. The priority was to safeguard human life, critical infrastructure and private property," Fire Service spokesman Yiannis Artopios said.

He said winds of up to 80 kilometers per hour (50 mph) were making air support difficult for fire crews.

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Fire

European heatwave kills hundreds, electric vehicle reportedly sparks catastrophic wildfire in France

Tim Meads
Daily Wire
Sat, 16 Jul 2022 03:03 UTC
wildfires france 2022
© REUTERS
A view of trees burning amid a wildfire near Landiras, France, July 16, 2022.
Since July 10, at least 360 people have been killed in Spain due to a massive heatwave and thousands of individuals have been forced to flee southern France due to a wildfire allegedly sparked by a vehicle having mechanical issues.

The Carlos III Health Institute reported Friday that hundreds have died in Spain as temperatures have skyrocketed to 45 degrees Celsius - or 114 degrees Fahrenheit - in the region. The heatwave has also contributed to massive wildfires in several countries that have scorched thousands of acres of land. In southwest France alone, 12,000 people have been forced to flee to escape multiple blazes.

France's Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne blamed the fire in the La-Teste-de-Buch region on an electric vehicle that had some sort of issue near a wooden glen. The second ongoing wildfire in France is also being investigated for criminal activity.

"80% of the forest fires are estimated to have been started by humans," she told France's BFMTV News.
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Fire

One dead as Morocco forest fires rage


France24
Fri, 15 Jul 2022 19:05 UTC
Two men evacuate from a village as forest fires rage near the Moroccan city of Ksar el-Kebir on Thursday
© FADEL SENNA / AFP
Two men evacuate from a village as forest fires rage near the Moroccan city of Ksar el-Kebir on Thursday
Fires ravaging remote mountain forests in northern Morocco have killed at least one person and forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 families, officials said on Friday.

Fanned by strong winds, the fires that broke out on Wednesday have destroyed 1,600 hectares (nearly 4,000 acres) of woodland in the provinces of Larache, Ouezzane, Taza and Tetouan, the authorities said.

"The body of a person suffering from multiple burns has been found" amid one of the blazes in the Larache region, the authorities said in a statement.

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Fire

Wildfires rage in Spain, France and Portugal as heatwave sweeps across Europe


The Telegraph (UK)
Wed, 13 Jul 2022 19:07 UTC
fire
A scorching heatwave has hit Europe, sparking droughts, health warnings and forest fires, and temperatures are set to rise even further this week.

Bastille Day fireworks celebrations were banned in France as a state of emergency was declared in Italy, where daytrippers fled to the beaches.

In Spain and Portugal there were forest fires, as health warnings were issued across many European countries struggling under the oppressive heat. In the UK there were warnings the NHS could buckle under the pressure of the heatwave.

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Fire

Dozens injured in Portugal wildfires as heatwave set to intensify


The Guardian
Mon, 11 Jul 2022 17:38 UTC
wildfires portugal
© Mário Cruz/EPA
People throw water and spray hoses on flames near their homes in Canecas, on the outskirts of Lisbon, July 9, 2022
More than 3,000 firefighters battle blazes as EU offers emergency help and temperatures could hit 43C

Wildfires in Portugal have left 29 people injured as thousands of firefighters and dozens of aircraft battle the blazes.

Authorities said 12 firefighters and 17 civilians required medical treatment for minor injuries, as reported by the Portuguese state broadcaster RTP and local media.

By Sunday afternoon, Portugal's civil protection agency said more than 3,000 firefighters were tackling active blazes.

The country is enduring a heatwave that is due to worsen, with temperatures expected to reach up to 43C (109F) on Tuesday.

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Fire

Major wildfire erupts in southeast France


RT
Fri, 08 Jul 2022 16:42 UTC
france wildfire plane
© AFP / Sylvain Thomas
A firefighting plane douses wildfire near Besseges, southern France, on July 8, 2022.
Some 900 firefighters backed by water-dropping aircraft have been deployed to battle the blaze.

A massive wildfire erupted in France's southeastern region of Gard overnight. As of Friday, the fire had ripped through over 600 hectares (more than 1,500 acres) of land, according to French emergency services.

Some 13 firefighters were injured in the village of Bordezac, where the fire started. All in all, more than 900 first responders backed by at least two water-dropping planes were deployed to battle the blaze, described as a "mega-fire" by emergency services. The fire is expected to be quenched completely within "several days," according to local authorities.

Comment: See also: Drought threatens France's crops, Italy receives only half of usual rainfall

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Fire

Baked Alaska: 225 wildfires sparked by state's 35,000 lightning bolts since end of June have scorched over 2.4 million acres

Stacy Liberatore
Daily Mail
Thu, 07 Jul 2022 13:26 UTC
Drought, extreme temperatures and thousands of lightning bolts each day have created the perfect storm for wildfires Alaska's interior. Pictured is a wildfire that has burned 780,000 acres near Lime Village, Alaska

Drought, extreme temperatures and thousands of lightning bolts each day have created the perfect storm for wildfires Alaska's interior. Pictured is a wildfire that has burned 780,000 acres near Lime Village, Alaska
Drought, extreme temperatures and thousands of lightning bolts each day led to the ignition of wildfires across Alaska's interior.

More than 2.4 million acres have burned this year by wildfires, which is double the acreage that is typically scorched at this point in the state's wildfire season.

The Alaska wildfire season typically begins in late May and ends in late July, and the National Park Services states that, on average, one million acres burn statewide each year.

The blazes are being ignited by lightning strikes plaguing the state - nearly 25,000 bolts were detected between June 28 and July 4 and more than 10,000 have hit since then.

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Fire

Heat, drought and wildfires: Torrid spell torments Portugal

Barry Hatton
AP News
Thu, 07 Jul 2022 07:42 UTC
Lisbon protestor
© AP Photo/Armando Franca
A protestor shades herself from the sun behind her poster in hot weather during a demonstration by workers' unions outside the parliament in Lisbon, Thursday, July 7, 2022.
Portugal is bracing for a heat wave, with temperatures in some areas forecast to climb as high as 43 C (109 F) this weekend just as a severe drought grips the country.

The Civil Protection Agency, a Portuguese government body that coordinates official responses to emergencies, said Thursday it is placing crews on high alert because of the risk of wildfires. About a third of the country faces an extreme risk of forest fires, authorities say.

The high temperatures are forecast to last at least a week. The national weather service IPMA says what it calls "tropical nights," when temperatures stay above 20 C (68 F) after sunset, are likely.

The government said it will place the country on a formal state of alert against wildfires from Friday. That step grants authorities special powers, such as outlawing stubble burning and fireworks at summer festivals, and allows it to requisition equipment such as bulldozers for clearing fire breaks.
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Fire

Lightning storms spark dozens of wildfires in Yukon, Canada - proportion of fires caused by strikes "stupendously high"

Amy Smart
Terrace Standard
Tue, 05 Jul 2022 17:54 UTC
On Monday alone, there were more than 3,000 lightning strikes in Yukon

On Monday alone, there were more than 3,000 lightning strikes in Yukon
Wildfires are breaking out across Yukon as lightning pummels the territory and a heat wave wears on, a fire information officer says.

Mike Fancie of Yukon Wildland Fire Management says about 20 fires a day have been sparked beginning on the long weekend, bringing the total this year to 155 wildfires that have burned 45,000 hectares.

Fancie described the proportion of fires caused by lightning as "stupendously high" at 97 per cent, compared with about 70 per cent in a typical year with the remainder being caused by humans.

On Monday alone, there were more than 3,000 lightning strikes, 484 of which were positive strikes that carry with them increased fire danger, he said.

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Fire

1,200 firefighters battling California wildfire


USA Today
Wed, 06 Jul 2022 17:41 UTC
Rafael Soto battles the Electra fire burning in the Rich Gulch community of Calaveras County, California, on Tuesday.
© Noah Berger/AP
Rafael Soto battles the Electra fire burning in the Rich Gulch community of Calaveras County, California, on Tuesday.
Evacuation orders have been expanded for remote communities near a wildfire that's chewing through California forests.

The Sierra Nevada Gold Country fire tripled in size to more than 4.7 square miles Tuesday.

Source: AP

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