Is mainland Greece safe from fires? Travel advice for Athens and Evia
AS wildfires continue in Greece, more areas in Europe have been warned of potential dangers.
Rhodes and Corfu have been hit by blazes after a recent heatwave left dry conditions across the country, with many questioning whether it is safe to visit other regions.
Is it safe to travel to Athens?
The UK government has shared travel advice due to the wildfires in Greece, and has urged British nationals to check with their travel operator or hotel prior to travel to the country.
The Foreign Office advice tells those travelling to the country to:
- Take care when visiting or driving through woodland areas
- Make sure cigarette ends are properly extinguished
- Not light barbecues
The Greek Civil Protection Authority also publishes a daily map detailing areas of high fire risk in the country, which the Foreign Office advises Brit holidaymakers to check during their travels in Greece.
Read More on Greece Wildfires
Travellers can stay updated with official advice by following 112 Greece on Twitter for official updates, and ensuring emergency alerts are enabled on their phone.
As well as wildfire alerts, the UK government has shared NHS advice on how to deal with the heatwave which has swept across the country and to make sure to follow any guidance from the Greek emergency services as it is issued.
As for Athens specifically, the capital city has no travel restrictions.
But visitors should check on the opening times for archaeological sites, including the Acropolis, as they have been closed at certain points due to high temperatures.
Most read in Travel
Is it safe to travel to Evia?
Evia is the second-largest Greek island and has been affected by wildfires.
Government advice should be checked after holidaymakers were told to evacuate parts of Evia and Agioi Theodoroi.
Residents in the southern villages of Livadi, Potami, Pernaraki, Platanistos, and Kastro have been urged to flee to the safety of the western town of Karystos.
Footage has also shown a firefighting plane crashing after clipping its wing on a tree while battling a fire on Evia.
Where are the wildfires in Greece?
The island of Rhodes has been severely impacted by wildfires, with more than 19,000 locals and tourists being rescued from the area.
There have also been fires in Corfu that caused nearly 2,500 locals and tourists to be evacuated overnight on July 23.
A "level 5" warning of "extreme fire risk" has been issued for Crete, with Rethymnon, Heraklion, and Lasithi being named as the locations at risk.
A "category 4" warning has also been issued for many parts of the nation, including the regions of Chania in Crete, central and western Greece, Attica, north and south Aegean, Thessaly, Peloponeese, and the Ionian islands.
These areas are at a "very high fire risk".
There have been a number of wildfires elsewhere in Europe over the summer.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Switzerland and Turkey have suffered blazes, while risk alerts have been raised to "extreme" and "very high" in areas of Majorca, Ibiza and Menorca in Spain.
Meanwhile, in Italy, Palermo airport in Sicily was even forced to close after fires burned dangerously close to its runways,