Firefighters race to contain wildfires in Greece as thousands evacuated

ATHENS, Greece — Firefighters battled blazes Thursday near Athens and on the island of Crete, where thousands were forced to flee holiday resorts, while blazes in neighboring Turkey claimed at least two lives.

More than 5,000 tourists, hotel workers and residents were evacuated from the Ierapetra area along Crete’s southern coast, authorities and hotel association officials said. A small number of people fled into the sea and were rescued by local fishermen and divers.

Ierapetra Mayor Manolis Frangoulis said firefighters working to prevent flare-ups and take advantage of a lull in high winds. “Thankfully no one was hurt but it’s a difficult situation,” he said.

Displaced tourists were relocated to other hotels or spent the night in an indoor basketball stadium. Several homes and businesses were damaged. Volunteers found dead farm animals, some burned alive while chained inside sheds. Separately, a wildfire near the port of Rafina, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) east of Athens disrupted local ferry services to the islands. Police went door-to-door to assist elderly residents while carrying out an evacuation order. In western Turkey, a local forestry worker was killed while trying to contain the fire near the town of Odemis, and an 81-year-old resident died from smoke inhalation, authorities said. It marked the first fatalities in a series of wildfires that have forced thousands to flee.

Meanwhile, hundreds of firefighters, supported by aircraft and helicopters, were deployed to battle a wildfire near the Aegean coastal town of Cesme, a popular vacation destination about 190 kilometers (120 miles) west of Odemis.

That fire, which began Wednesday, forced the evacuation of three neighborhoods and led to road closures. Television footage showed flames racing through dry vegetation on both sides of a highway.

Over the past week, Turkey has battled hundreds of wildfires fueled by strong winds, extreme heat and low humidity. Now mostly under control, the blazes have damaged or destroyed about 200 homes.

Summer wildfires are common in both Greece and Turkey, where experts warn that climate change is intensifying conditions.

Late Wednesday, Turkey’s parliament adopted a landmark climate law targeting net-zero emissions by 2053. The legislation includes measures to establish a carbon market board to oversee efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The law comes at a time when Turkey is increasingly grappling with issues related to climate change, from searing heatwaves to prolonged droughts, experts say.

“As a Mediterranean country, Turkey is highly vulnerable to climate change,” said Gizem Koc, a lawyer with the U.K.-based environmental advocacy group ClientEarth. “The most striking vulnerability is the drought and water stress in some regions, but also there is increasing frequency of floods and other extreme weather events.”