It has now been 12 days since the fires ravaged Greece violently.
The situation is even desperate in Euboea where the firefighters continue on Monday, for the 7th consecutive day, their fight against the flames which destroy, one after the other, the villages in the north of this island.
The fires are also affecting Turkey, but the situation is less problematic because most of them were under control on Sunday.
These two countries have been experiencing an exceptional heatwave for almost two weeks.
The fires killed eight in Turkey, two in Greece and dozens of people had to be hospitalized.
The fire near Athens in remission
At the gates of Athens, the disaster which destroyed dozens of homes and businesses was in remission on Sunday but "the danger of a resurgence is high," warned Greek Deputy Minister of Civil Protection Nikos Hardalias.
On the Ionian island of Zakynthos, where a small fire had broken out, a water bomber plane crashed in operation without causing any victims, according to firefighters.
If the situation seems to be stabilizing in the country, the disaster on the island of Euboea, the second largest in Greece, remains very worrying.
In the grip of fire, this tongue of land wedged between Attica and the Aegean Sea now offers an apocalyptic panorama.
"How long will this drama last?"
"Tweeted former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Sunday, denouncing, like many, the lack of air and land resources.
"The forces are not sufficient" and "the situation is critical", also hammered Giorgos Kelaïtzidis, the vice-governor of Euboea.
According to him, at least 35,000 hectares and hundreds of houses have burned down.
Some 2,000 islanders were evacuated by boat and relocated to hotels.
Assistance from France
The government nevertheless assures us that "the land and air forces are fighting a great battle, without interruption". But the air assets are experiencing "serious difficulties" because of the turbulence, thick smoke and limited visibility, said Nikos Hardalias. Despite the rugged terrain, nearly 500 firefighters continue their fierce fight against the fire in the north of the island, ablaze from east to west. Among them are some 200 firefighters from Ukraine and Romania, reinforced by 17 water bombers and helicopters. France, which has already dispatched 3 Canadair and 80 firefighters to the site north of Athens, announced on Sunday the dispatch of additional resources.
More than 70,000 hectares have gone up in smoke so far this year in Greece, including 56,000 in the past ten days, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS).
Some 1,700 hectares had been devastated by the flames on average over these ten summer days between 2008 and 2020.
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