Greek wildfires: Thousands evacuated as fire and smoke close in on Athens

A man watches the flames as a wildfire approaches Kochyli beach on the island of Evia. Photo / AP

Wildfires rampaged through some of Greece's last remaining forests for yet another day on Saturday (local time), encroaching on more inhabited areas after burning scores of homes, businesses and farms during the country's worst heatwave in three decades.

One of the massive fires threatened the Greek capital's most important national park and sent choking smoke across the Athens region, where authorities set up a hotline for residents with breathing problems.

Thousands of residents and vacationers in areas where fires broke out days ago have fled by land and by sea.

A local official in the southern Peloponnese region of Mani, the site of another major fire, estimated 70 per cent of her area had been destroyed.

"It's a biblical catastrophe. We're talking about three-quarters of the municipality," East Mani Deputy Mayor Drakoulakou told state broadcaster ERT, pleading for more support from water-dropping aircraft.

The fire that broke out north of Athens killed a volunteer firefighter on Friday. At least 20 people have been injured in blazes nationwide. The multiple fires have stretched the country's firefighting forces to the limit as crews tackled the constant rekindling of several of the blazes, including the large fire burning outside of the capital.

Burned vehicles are seen in Limni village on the island of Evia, about 160km north of Athens. Photo / AP

The country has been baked by its most protracted heatwave in 30 years, with temperatures soaring to 45C. Temperatures eased on Friday, but winds picked up, further exacerbating the situation.

Evacuation orders for villages and neighbourhoods have been constant, sent by push alerts to mobile phones in affected areas, while police and firefighters have gone door-to-door urging people to leave homes in the path of the flames.

The causes of the fires are under investigation. Three people were arrested on Friday on suspicion of starting blazes, in two cases intentionally. Police said the suspect detained north of Athens had allegedly lit fires at three separate spots in the area ravaged by the large blaze, which first broke out Tuesday.

A burned building is seen in Limni village on the island of Evia. More than 1000 people have been evacuated from a seaside village and beaches on the island. Photo / AP

Fires described as the worst in decades also have swept through stretches of neighbouring Turkey's southern coast for the past 10 days, killing eight people. The top Turkish forestry official said 217 fires had been brought under control since July 28 in over half of the country's provinces, while firefighters continued working Saturday to tame six fires in two provinces.

Massive fires also have been burning across Siberia in Russia's north for weeks, and hot, bone-dry, gusty weather has also fuelled devastating wildfires in California.