Deadly wildfire spreads in Greece as weather chaos continues in Europe

Deadly wildfire spreads in Greece as weather chaos continues in Europe Two people died after a wildfire gutted a house in a forested settlement in northern Greece - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Two people died after a wildfire gutted a house in a forested settlement in northern Greece, the fire brigade said. The fire broke out in bushland on Tuesday afternoon and, fanned by strong winds, spread quickly and engulfed the house near the village of Liti about 25 km (16 miles) from the northern town of Thessaloniki, local media reported. The fire brigade said they found a dead man nearby as they put out the fire and saw a second body inside the house. A woman with burns was rescued from the same area. Authorities had told residents to evacuate the settlement and move to a nearby playing field. Greece and other Mediterranean countries are considered wildfire hotspots by scientists due to a fast-warming climate, with blazes becoming more destructive during hot and dry summers. On Tuesday, the French Health Ministry said the country had recorded at least 300 excess deaths during unusually early heatwaves in May that triggered amber alerts in 17 departments. The ministry said the toll was a preliminary estimate based on unconsolidated all-cause mortality data and mostly comprised people aged 75 and over. French weather agency Meteo-France said May 26 was the hottest day in May ever recorded in the country, with a national average temperature of 24.9 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, a powerful storm has torn through the Romanian capital Bucharest and 20 counties, killing one person, damaging dozens of homes and vehicles and flooding several metro stations. In Bucharest alone, nearly 2,000 calls for help were reported on Wednesday, emergency services told broadcaster Digi24. Outside the capital, the storm wrought damage in 60 towns and villages. One person was killed when a tree fell on their vehicle. Police and firefighters were deployed across several counties, evacuating flooded homes and clearing debris. The storm was preceded by a heat wave, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius in parts of the country on Monday and Tuesday, boosting power consumption and raising electricity prices. Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments