ATHENS – A fierce wildfire, driven by powerful winds, blazed through Wednesday night and continued into Thursday in Crete, Greece. This situation necessitated the evacuation of over 1,500 individuals from their homes and hotels.

According to the fire department, 230 firefighters, aided by 10 aircraft capable of dropping water, were engaging in efforts to control the wildfire that engulfed forests and farmland in the Ierapetra region along Crete’s southern coast. Overnight, two people were taken to safety via boat, while six private boats were on alert in case more evacuations by sea became essential, as reported by the coast guard.

Homes were reported damaged as flames swept through hillside forests, fanned by strong winds.

“The situation is incredibly challenging. The fire is difficult to control. At the moment, containment is not possible,” stated Nektarios Papadakis, a civil protection authority official, in a report to The Associated Press during the night.

“The tourists who were moved out are all okay. They have been taken to an indoor basketball arena and hotels in other regions of the island,” he said.

The Fire Service and a civil protection agency issued mobile phone alerts for the evacuations and appealed to residents not to return to try to save their property.

As fires crested ridgelines and edged toward residential areas, the blaze sent clouds of ash into the night sky, illuminated by the headlights of emergency vehicles and water trucks that lined the coastal road near the resorts of Ferma and Achlia on the southeast of Crete.

Several residents were treated for breathing difficulties, officials said, but there were no immediate reports of serious injuries.

Crete is one of Greece’s most popular destinations for both foreign and domestic tourists.

The risk of wildfires remained very high across Crete and parts of southern Greece Thursday, according to a daily bulletin issued by the Fire Service.

Wildfires are frequent in the country during its hot, dry summers, and the fire department has already tackled dozens across Greece so far this year.

In 2018, a massive fire swept through the seaside town of Mati, east of Athens, trapping people in their homes and on roads as they tried to flee. More than 100 died, including some who drowned while trying to swim away from the flames.

___

Elena Becatoros in Athens contributed to this report.