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BookmarkScienceDaily (Aug. 27, 2007) — Large parts of the Greek countryside - from the island of Evia north of Athens to the Peloponnese in the south - have been ravaged by some of the worst wildfires in living memory.
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Firefighting services are stretched to the limit, with new fires erupting almost hourly, fanned by strong, dry winds known as Meltemi. Authorities are currently battling some 170 blazes from the Ionian Sea in the west, Ioannina in the north and the Peloponnese in the south.
Water-bombing aircraft from France, Italy and Canada are in action, with more international aid expected.
The worst of the fires have been concentrated in the mountains of the Peloponnese in the south and on the island of Evia north of Athens. Strong winds blew smoke and ash over the capital, blackening the evening sky and turning the rising moon red.
The fires are so big that they can be observed from space. EUMETSAT satellite pictures show plumes of smoke stretching hundreds of miles across the Mediterranean.
