Widespread wildfires

Written by David Fletcher 21 Jul 2017
Widespread wildfires

Wildfires are raging in central and southern Europe, with firefighters tackling blazes in five countries. Twelve fires broke out in Croatia's second largest city of Split. 4,500 hectares of land were destroyed, including homes. Fires are active in several municipalities in Montenegro; forest fires forced the evacuation of more than 100 campers on the Lustica peninsula and spread further inland. Two firefighting planes from NATO helped contain the blaze. Fires are also burning 300 acres of forest near Nice, and hundreds of firefighters are battling another fire in the south of France. In Corsica, fire swept through 200 hectares of scrubland near Bonifacio. Flames driven by strong winds raced towards homes which had to be evacuated. Houses were also evacuated due to a fire near Rome, and other fires continue to burn near Naples. 1,400 firefighters supported by water-bombing planes and helicopters have fought three blazes in northern Portugal since 16 July. See also item 4 in the ‘World’ section.

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