Summary

  • A plane fighting wildfires has crashed on the Greek island of Evia, killing two crew members

  • The Greek air force pilots were tackling a blaze when their aircraft smashed into a hillside

  • Meanwhile, Crete - the largest of the Greek Islands - has been put on high alert because of an extreme risk of fire

  • Hundreds of tourists have already been evacuated from the island of Rhodes

  • A European heatwave has helped create dry conditions that let fires take hold in Greece, Sicily, Croatia, Algeria and Tunisia

  • The situation would have been "virtually impossible" without human-induced climate change, scientists say

Live Reporting

Edited by Jack Burgess and Alexandra Fouché

  1. Plane crash was air force plane helping to fight wildfires - fire service

    Azadeh Moshiri
    Reporting from Rhodes

    The plane before it crashedReuters

    The plane crashed shortly after flying over an area of burning shrubland

    Greece's fire service has provided more details on the plane crash.

    Fire service spokesperson Yannis Artopoios has confirmed a Greek plane has crashed on the island of Evia, near Platanistos.

    He tells the BBC the plane involved is a Greek air force plane, with two air force pilots on board, who have been trained to respond to fires.

    Platanistos was evacuated earlier in the day, due to a fire spreading.

  2. Watch: Fires burn around Sicily's capital overnight

    Watch: Video recorded last night show fires alight around Sicily's capital Palermo

    As we've been reporting, Greece is not the only country suffering from summer wildfires.

    The Italian island of Sicily has been battling fires overnight. Video recorded from a car window in the capital Palermo shows fires burning on hills not far from the city.

    Wildfires forced the temporary closure of Palermo airport earlier today.

  4. Extreme risk of fire across southern Europe and north Africa

    Dominic Bailey
    BBC News Visual Journalism team

    High temperatures across parts of southern Europe and north Africa are bringing a greater risk of fires, which can be seen from data from the European Forest Fire Information System and the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.

    The forecast for Wednesday 26 July shows some areas in the region are at the highest fire risk level - so there is a very extreme risk of fire.

    Extreme fire danger warning across southern Italy and North Africa for July 26

  5. What’s the link between the Greek wildfires and climate change?

    Mark Poynting
    BBC News

    a man shovels dirt onto a small fire by a gravel roadReuters

    Greece is experiencing its worst July for wildfires on record.

    Wildfires happen naturally in the Mediterranean, so it’s difficult to know for sure if climate change has caused an individual wildfire to start or be more intense.

    However, scientists are clear that climate change is making the weather conditions needed for wildfires to spread further more likely.

    The recent extreme heat experienced across southern Europe – which scientists say would have been “virtually impossible” without climate change – has drawn moisture out of the ground and vegetation.

    Once ignited – whether by natural or human causes – these tinder-dry conditions provide fuel for fires to spread at an incredible speed, especially if winds are strong.

    The way that humans use land – for example, converting natural vegetation to forest plantations or agriculture – also affects how wildfires spread.

    That means while some parts of the world have seen an increase in the area burned in recent decades, others have seen a fall.

    But nevertheless, wildfires are expected to become more frequent and intense in future because of the combined effects of climate change and land use change.

    Read more here.

  6. British woman in Rhodes praises local family for evacuation help

    Cathy Holloway has a flat in Rhodes and has been evacuated three times from wildfires.

    Speaking to BBC Radio 5 live earlier, she said she was staying with a local family and will find out later today whether her flat has been destroyed.

    “I had to get out in a hurry yesterday afternoon and as I drove up the hill away from my apartment, I could see the flames in the distance.

    “The family I'm staying with [have] taken me into their home, they've made me one of their family.

    She tells the BBC she will spend today helping to buy provisions for firefighters from money collected by tourists, including eye drops, masks and water.

    That is the Greeks in a nutshell, they’ll give you the last thing they’ve got if they think you need it.

    Cathy Holloway, British woman evacuated from her flat

  7. 'At least two people' on board crashed plane - fire service

    We have more on the plane reported to have crashed and we are seeing footage of it which we are currently verifying.

    State broadcaster ERT says the accident occurred over the town of Karystos on the island of Evia near Athens, where a fire has been burning.

    "A Greek Canadair plane with at least two people on board crashed near Platanisto," a village on Evia, fire service spokesman Yannis Artopios is quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.

  8. Plane fighting wildfires crashes
    Breaking

    A plane fighting wildfires in Greece has crashed, according to the fire brigade.

    We'll bring you more details on this development when we get them.

  9. WATCH: BBC reporter sees wildfire spreading in Rhodes

    Watch: BBC reporter sees wildfire spreading in Rhodes

    In this video BBC reporter Azadeh Moshiri speaks about a fire spreading in southern Rhodes and being exacerbated by the wind.

    She explains how they've seen water bombers fly over several times but it's the weather conditions that are making it "so difficult" for firefighters.

  10. Holidaymakers in Sicily fight flames off their hotel doorstep

    Jonas Roggan, from Germany, was holidaying in Sicily's capital Palermo with friends when wildfire crept up to their bed and breakfast.

    “As my three friends and I woke up at our B&B the fire was on the hill above us," he tells the BBC.

    “It’s not unusual for that region in this time of the year, so we started breakfast. But then the fire came down the hill and was directly at the road where we were staying," he says.

    A hill on fire in Palermo, Sicily on July 24Jonas Roggan

    Jonas says the group packed their belongings into their car and started helping the hotel staff fight the flames.

    "We started to fight the fire below the terrace with water buckets and everything we could get."

    “Shortly afterwards a local firefighter joined us and we got control of it. It took about one and a half hours," he says.

    The hotel was undamaged and Jonas and his group got on a flight off the island just before the Palermo airport closed.

    A man stands on a brick wall with a hose and sprays flamesJonas Roggan

    One of Jonas's friends fights flames off the hotel's terrace with a hose

  11. Situation stabilising in Rhodes - UK government

    The UK government says the situation in the Greek island of Rhodes is "stabilising" and the "vast majority of the island is not affected by these fires".

    Government spokesperson the Earl of Courtown has told the House of Lords there are "no plans for the UK government to repatriate holidaymakers from Rhodes" as the airport was operating normally.

    He adds that a team of officials from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FDCO) and the Red Cross are currently based at Rhodes airport.

    Current FCDO advice is to check with your tour operator or hotel if you're planning to travel to areas affected by wildfires.

  12. Weather making wildfires much more likely - scientist

    Justin Rowlatt
    Climate editor

    This year, large areas of southern Europe have experienced weather that has made wildfire much more likely, says Dr Thomas Smith, an environmental geography associate professor at the London School of Economics.

    He says “fire conducive weather” in the region has been rated “extreme” or “very extreme” on the fire weather index. The index combines information on temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, and winds to assess the risk of fire.

    Aside from Rhodes, parts of south-western Turkey, Crete, Sicily, and Sardinia all have similar extreme fire weather outlooks for the coming days, according to Prof Smith.

    This is the second major heatwave in the Mediterranean this summer, he points out. The first was found to have been made 100 times more likely and at least 2C hotter due to the human impact on climate change.

    Dr Smith says he expects a similar finding for the current one, which he says, “is ultimately responsible for the wildfires we’ve been seeing over the past week”.

  13. Volunteer firefighters camping in woods to watch for fire

    Jenny Hill
    Reporting from Rhodes

    Watch: BBC News with volunteer firefighters in Rhodes

    Volunteer firefighters are also helping to battle wildfires on Rhodes.

    Near the village of Salakos we met a group of men and women determined to protect their community from the flames which, just a few days ago, were on their doorstep. They’re officially certified by the Greek fire service, which has given them training and equipment.

    The pine trees that grow on the wooded hills and valleys here are huge – 15 metres high – and one of the firefighters described tackling flames higher than the treeline.

    They’re camping in the woods. Some of them have been here for eight nights now, keeping watch.

    While we talked someone arrived with a cake for someone’s birthday. There was a candle on top – unlit. "We only extinguish fires" joked one man, "we don’t start them".

    A group of volunteer firefighters camp near the woods that were burnt earlier this week in Salakos, Greece.

  14. Serbian firefighters being sent to Greece

    Romanian firefighters take a rest in Rhodes, GreeceReuters

    Other European countries, including Romania, have already sent firefighters to assist the Greek emergency services

    Following talks between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, a team of 36 Serbian firefighters and 14 firefighting vehicles are being sent to Greece today.

    They'll help the Greeks fight fires in the worst affected areas.

    "The friendship of the Greek and Serbian people throughout history has been inviolable," Serbia's Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic has said on Instagram, adding "Orthodox Christianity and tradition bind us".

    Two medics with an ambulance vehicle will also be sent to provide assistance where needed, Serbia's public broadcaster RTS reports.

    Greece is a popular holiday destination among Serbian tourists. Former Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias has estimated that around 900,000 Serbians visited the country in 2022.

  15. Chaotic scenes in Sicily's capital Palermo

    Laura Gozzi
    Live reporter

    A wildfire burns near the Sicilian airport in PalermoReuters

    A wildfire burns near a Sicilian airport close to Palermo, Italy

    Local Italian media has reported that the city is "encircled" by fires following record high temperatures over the last few weeks.

    Italian media reported that one firefighter was seriously injured while trying to tackle one of the blazes, which are currently being fuelled by high winds.

    Half of the bus network in the city has been suspended as the vehicles are overheating and cannot cool down due to consistently high temperatures.

    A major hospital in the north of the city is being threatened by the flames; more than a thousand families have been evacuated from neighbourhoods on the outskirts of the city; and over 200 people sought medical attention due to smoke inhalation.

    And an 88-year-old woman died after falling ill as emergency services were unable to reach her due to the fires.

    The farmers' association, Coldiretti, said Sicily is facing an "unprecedented catastrophe and incalculable environmental damage".

    Nello Musumeci, who is minister for civil protection in Sicily, wrote on Facebook: "This is one of the hardest days in Italy's history for 10 years. Climate change has hit our nation and demands that we all change our ways. There are no excuses."

  16. Firefighters tackle blaze in Rhodes

    A fire engine parked near a fire in scrub

    Firefighters have resumed the battle against a blaze between Vati and Gennadi on the Greek island Rhodes.

    Both of these villages have received an order to evacuate.

    We are hearing that this is where the focus of the fire service is on the island today.

  17. Where are the fires in Greece and Turkey?

    As we've been reporting, fires have been affecting parts of southern Europe and northern Africa amid a heatwave in the region.

    Here are some of the areas affected:

    A map showing the locations of wildfires across Greece from the last 7 days and the last 24 hours.

    We have been keeping a close eye on Rhodes in particular, after the fires on the island sparked mass evacuations.

    Hundreds of tourists have already left the island, with more expected to depart today.

    A map showing the locations of wildfires on Rhodes from the last 7 days and the last 24 hours.

  18. Why are the fires so intense?

    Justin Rowlatt
    Climate editor

    The combination of heat, wind and people in the Mediterranean have always posed mortal risks, says Guillermo Rein, professor of fire science at Imperial College London.

    But climate change is making wildfires larger, faster and harder to stop, he warns.

    That is because the more intense the heatwave, the dryer the vegetation becomes.

    Add in a strong breeze, as we have in the southern Mediterranean at the moment, and wildfires become much bigger and faster, explains Prof Rein.

    “They become walls of flames that cannot be stopped by ground crews or slowed down by airtankers,” he says.

    Bigger fires also jump firebreaks more easily because of the intense heat they radiate over dozens of meters, and the flying embers that can carry flames kilometres away.

  19. What causes wildfires?

    A fire burns trees and low vegetation in the Kiotari area of Rhodes, Greece, 24 July 2023EPA

    A wildfire burning trees and vegetation in the Kiotari area of Rhodes

    Wildfires need three things: Fuel, oxygen and heat. On a hot and dry day, something as simple as a spark can ignite a fire.

    They can be caused:

    • Naturally– ignited by heat from the sun or from a lightning strike, as most are
    • By human activity– people have been blamed for causing fires by arson, campfires, not burning debris properly, discarding lit cigarettes, and playing with matches

    Once started, a wildfire can spread due to:

    • The wind
    • Fuel – this includes anything from trees, the underbrush, or grassy fields. During a period of low rainfall or drought, the foliage becomes even drier, meaning a fire will burn even more violently and be more difficult to control
    • A slope– a fire goes up an incline very fast because it pre-heats the fuel above it

    Read more on how wildfires start and how they can be stopped here.

  20. What's happening in Algeria?

    At least 34 people have been killed in Algeria and thousands evacuated after wildfires broke out across the country.

    Of those killed, ten were soldiers who were battling the fires in Bejaia, the Algerian defence ministry said.

    Outbreaks of 97 wildfires were recorded across 16 provinces affecting forest, crops and farmland on Monday.

    Northern Algeria has been experiencing a record heatwave in recent days, with temperatures reaching 48C.

    And temperatures in several regions in North Africa are up to 7C higher than normal for the time of year.

    Read more about the fires affecting the country here.

    Fire raging along Taazibte's coast in northern Algeria yesterday