Firefighters battled to contain a wildfire that has threatened local communities and caused major damage to the 550-hectare wildlife habitat of Agrilitsa on the Greek island of Evia.

The fire that broke out in the early hours of Tuesday on Greece‘s second-largest island prompted the evacuation of the villages of Kontodespoti, Makrymalli, Stavros and Platana, and threatened the town of Psachna, officials said.

One firefighter was hospitalised after suffering burns and the area faced power outages and water cuts on Wednesday, residents said.

Greece has been hit by a spate of wildfires fanned by strong winds and high temperatures, with more than 1,000 firefighters assigned to the blazes.



