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A6 WORLD NEWS
Monday 28 august 2023

More than 600 firefighters backed by water-dropping aircraft

struggle to control wildfires in Greece

By ELENA BECATOROS ed on Saturday on the Cy-
Associated Press cladic island of Andros and
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — was still not under control
More than 600 firefighters, Sunday, with 73 firefighters,
including reinforcements two planes and two heli-
from several European copters dousing the blaze.
countries and backed by Lightning strikes are sus-
a fleet of water-dropping pected of having sparked
planes and helicopters, that wildfire. Flare-ups were
were tackling the remnants also occurring in a large
of three major wildfires in wildfire in the central region
Greece Sunday, two of of Viotia, the fire depart-
which have been raging ment said.
for days. With firefighting forces
Greece has been plagued stretched to the limit,
by daily outbreaks of doz- Greece has called for help
ens of fires over the past from other European coun-
week as gale-force winds tries. Germany, Sweden,
and hot, dry summer con- Croatia and Cyprus have
ditions combined to whip sent aircraft, while doz-
up flames and hamper fire- ens of Romanian, French,
fighting efforts. Across the Czech, Bulgarian, Alba-
country, firefighters were nian, Slovak and Serb fire-
battling 105 wildfires on The view of burned forest in Acharnes suburb, on Mount Parnitha, in northwestern Athens, Greece, fighters are helping on the
Sunday, with 46 of them Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023. More than 600 firefighters, including reinforcements from several European ground.
having broken out in the countries, backed by a fleet of water-dropping planes and helicopters were battling three With their hot, dry summers,
persistent major wildfires in Greece Sunday, two of which have been raging for days.
24 hours between Saturday (AP Photo/Michael Varaklas) southern European coun-
evening and Sunday eve- tries are particularly prone
ning, the fire department pean Union country, has active hotspots, the Euro- in northeast Greece." He to wildfires. European Union
said. decimated vast tracts of pean Union's Copernicus also expressed "supportive officials have blamed cli-
Authorities are investigat- forest and burned homes in Emergency Management closeness" to the Greek mate change for the in-
ing the causes of the blaz- outlying areas of the city of Service said Sunday. people. On the northwest- creasing frequency and
es, with arson suspected in Alexandroupolis. Copernicus is the EU space ern fringes of the Greek intensity of wildfires in Eu-
some. On Sunday, 295 firefighters, program's Earth observa- capital, another major rope, noting that 2022 was
In Greece's northeastern re- seven planes and five heli- tion component and uses wildfire burning for days the second-worst year for
gions of Evros and Alexan- copters were tackling flare- satellite imagery to provide was now limited to flare-ups wildfire damage on record
droupolis, a massive wildfire ups that were creating new mapping data. and was being tackled by after 2017.
believed to have caused fire fronts, triggering evacu- Pope Francis, address- 160 firefighters, one plane The causes of Greece's
20 of the 21 wildfire-related ation orders for two villag- ing the public in St. Peter's and three helicopters. The two largest fires have not
deaths in the past week, es, one in the Evros region Square in the Vatican on fire has already scorched yet been determined. For
was burning for a ninth day. and another in the Rodopi Sunday, said he wanted to homes and part of a na- some of the smaller blazes,
The blaze, where smaller region. express assurances that he tional park on Mount Par- officials have said arson or
fires combined to form one The wildfire has scorched is remembering "in prayer nitha, one of the last green negligence is suspected,
of the largest single wildfires 77,000 hectares (297 square the victims of the fires that areas near Athens. and several people have
ever to have struck a Euro- miles) of land and had 120 have burned in these days A third major wildfire start- been arrested.q

Ukraine investigates incident that killed 3

pilots while Russia attacks with cruise missiles

man Yuri Ihnat told Ukrai- on Saturday paid tribute to the Kyiv region surrounding
nian television on Sunday Pilshchykov, describing him the Ukrainian capital, the
it wasn't immediately clear as a "Ukrainian officer, one falling debris damaged a
how long the probe would of those who helped our dozen private homes and
take. According to the air country a lot." wounded two people,
force's Telegram page, two Ukraine's Vasilkiv tactical Ukraine's Interior Ministry
L-39 training military aircraft aviation brigade on Sun- said.
collided on Friday during day identified the other In Kyiv, relatives of soldiers
Women cry while listening to the Ukrainian national anthem at a a combat mission over two pilots killed in the col- captured by Russian forces
protest calling for the release of Ukrainian soldiers captured by Ukraine's western Zhytomyr lision as Viacheslav Minka in Mariupol, a port city in
Russians at the Independence Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, region. Three pilots were and Serhiy Prokazin. eastern Ukraine Moscow's
Aug. 27, 2023. The protest marks five hundred days since the killed, including Andriy Russian forces, in the army besieged and seized
soldiers were captured in the besieged city of Mariupol. Pilshchykov, a well-known meantime, targeted cen- early on in the war, gath-
(AP Photo/Bram Janssen) pilot with the nickname tral and northern regions ered for a rally marking
By SUSIE BLANN tion after a midair collision "Juice" who was an outspo- of Ukraine with cruise mis- 500 days since their family
Associated Press between two warplanes ken advocate for Ukraine siles overnight. Ukraine's air members were in captivity.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — in the west of the country getting F-16 fighter jets. force on Sunday reported They demanded that the
Ukrainian authorities have killed three pilots. President Volodymyr Zelen- air defenses successfully in- Ukrainian authorities bring
launched an investiga- Ukraine's air force spokes- skyy in his nightly address tercepted four of them. In their loved ones home.q