Plane fighting Greece wildfires crashes in Evia leaving ‘two people’ dead

Two people have been confirmed dead after a plane fighting the wildfires in Greece crashed, according to reports from the BBC.

The accident occurred over the town of Karystos on the island of Evia near Athens, where a fire has been burning for several days.

Local media reported the plane’s wing clipped a tree, with footage showing the small plane plummeting to the ground and exploding after dropping its cargo over the blaze.

Flames burn a forest in Vati village, on the Aegean Sea island of Rhodes, southeastern Greece

(AP)

The accident was aired in a state television broadcast that showed the low-flying aircraft disappearing into a canyon before a fireball appeared moments later.

The Greek air force said there were two airmen aboard the amphibious Canadair CL-215 plane when it crashed.

Two helicopters had rushed to the scene to carry out a search and rescue operation, the air force said. Several ambulances are also at the scene.

Speaking to The Independent, the Greek Fire Brigade confirmed there had been two pilots in the plane, and said they were investigating the crash.

This comes as 20,000 people had to leave homes and hotels in Rhodes over the weekend, in what has been the “biggest evacuation” in Greek history.

The wildfires, which have been spreading over the last week, have caused 2,000 holidaymakers to return home by plane on Monday, with around 2,500 people evacuated from Corfu as dozens of fires continue to rage.

A third successive heat wave in Greece pushed temperatures back above 40 degrees Celsius, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stating that the country was “at war with fire”.

Emergency services trying to put out wildfires on Rhodes (Sarah George/PA)

(PA Media)

“This battle is uneven, and it will keep being like that for as long as the conditions remain hard,” the centre-right leader told the Greek parliament.

The European Union has sent 500 firefighters, 100 vehicles and seven planes from 10 member states, while Turkey, Israel, Egypt and other countries have also sent help. Contributing nations included Italy which was dealing with its own fires and extreme weather at home. On the island of Sicily, Palermo’s international airport temporarily shut down as flames from a wildfire approached.

An average of 50 new wildfires have broken out daily for the past 12 days in Greece, according to government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis. Over the weekend 64 new blazes were recorded.

An aircraft drops water over a wildfire in Vati village, on the Aegean Sea island of Rhodes, southeastern Greece

(AP)

New estimates in Rhodles suggest that 10% of the island has been burned, with additional flights scheduled to bring home stranded holidaymakers.

The Foreign Office previously said that as many as 10,000 Britons were estimated to be on the island.

The fires will deal a blow to a tourist industry that is a mainstay of the Greek economy. It accounts for 18% of gross domestic product and one in five jobs, with an even greater contribution on islands such as Rhodes.

High temperatures across parts of southern Europe and north Africa have been linked by scientists to the human-made climate crisis, with wildfires breaking out across the continent.

An extreme heatwave in Italy has caused a wildfire to encircle Palermo after temperatures in Sicily climbed to 47C.

An estimated 20,000 people have been evacuated to safety from the wildfires

(AP)

Hundreds of firefighters from regions across the country have been called in to deal with the blaze, while an 88-year-old woman was reported to have died after emergency services failed to reach her in time.

However, northern regions continue to bear the brunt of the bad weather with torrential rain causing flooding and two women killed by falling trees.

Devastating forest fires have also killed at least 34 people in Algeria, with strong winds fanning the flames towards neighbouring Tunisia and causing two border closures.

UK airlines such as easyJet are continuing to sell flights to Rhodes, while two of the biggest tour operators, Jet2 and Tui, have cancelled all flights for the next days ahead.