The European Union-backed Copernicus Climate Change Service stated on Tuesday a wildfire that has been burning in northeastern Greece for 11 days has destroyed an area bigger than New York City.
The fire originated near the city of Alexandroupolis and swiftly spread across the Evros region, killing at least 20 people last week in Europe’s deadliest conflagration this summer, fueled by gale-force winds and hot weather. It burnt vast swaths of beautiful flora and devastated houses and livelihoods.
The Copernicus Emergency Management Service stated that the fire had destroyed at least 808.7 square kilometres (312.2 square miles). New York City covers an area of 778.2 square miles (300.5 square miles).
According to Copernicus, the fire was the largest on European land in years.
All but one of the fatalities are thought to be illegal migrants who crossed from Turkey while escaping authorities in the forest. Authorities are concerned that more bodies will be discovered once the fire is extinguished, as Evros is a popular crossing point into the EU for thousands of migrants and refugees each year.
The fire service claimed that aircraft and hundreds of firefighters on the ground, including those from Serbia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Albania were battling the flames.
On Tuesday, authorities warned that the fire’s threats remained high.
Summer wildfires are normal in Greece, but the government claims exceptional weather conditions linked to climate change have exacerbated them this year. In 2018, the deadliest fire in Greece’s history killed 104 people outside of Athens.
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