Greek wildfires kill 74, the deadliest blaze in decades

RAFINA, GREECE — Wildfires raged through seaside resorts near the Greek capital of Athens, torching homes, cars and forests as they killed at least 74 people, authorities said Tuesday.

Twenty-six of the dead were found huddled together in a compound, while a few bodies were recovered from the sea where they had fled to escape the flames and smoke.

Greece endures wildfires every summer but the fires that broke out Monday were the deadliest to hit the country in decades. Fuelled by gale-force winds, they trapped hundreds of people on beaches, roads and in homes.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared three days of national mourning. There were fears the death toll could rise even further, as there was no definitive count of how many people were missing.

Although the fires had largely abated by Tuesday afternoon, they were far from out.

Hundreds of firefighters aided by water-dropping aircraft were tackling the remaining areas in the two main blazes near the capital. One was northeast of Athens near Rafina, where most of the casualties appeared to have occurred, while the other was about 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of Athens, where some flareups were reported Tuesday afternoon.

Four other fires were burning in other parts of the country, including near Corinth and on the island of Crete.

Coast guard boats patrolled the shores near fire-hit areas Tuesday after more than 700 people trapped by quick-moving fires had to be rescued from beaches or the sea, where six of the dead were found. Defence Minister Panos Kammenos said 88 people had been picked up from the sea by a military vessel.

Greek authorities urged the public to contact them if they are looking for loved ones but many people took to social media, posting pictures of those they were looking for and their last known location before the fires hit.

Fire service spokesperson Stavroula Malliri announced Tuesday afternoon that the death toll had jumped from 50 to 74, with another 164 adults and 23 children injured by the fires. Of the adults, 71 remained hospitalized, 10 of them in serious condition, and 11 of the children were also still hospitalized.

Twenty-six of the dead were found at first light Tuesday huddled together in one compound near the sea in the community of Mati, near the port of Rafina. Red Cross rescuers who found them said they appeared to be families or groups of friends, as they were found hugging in groups of threes and fours.

With the flames whipped up by shifting gale-force winds, many tourists and residents fled toward the coastline. Some swam out to sea, braving rough water and strong currents to escape the ferocious flames and choking smoke.

“It happened very fast. The fire was in the distance, then sparks from the fire reached us. Then the fire was all around us,” resident Nikos Stavrinidis told The Associated Press.

Stavrinidis, his wife and four friends swam out into the sea to escape the smoke, but they quickly became disoriented, losing sight of the shore and being swept out further by the wind and currents.

Two of the group didn’t survive.

Heavy rain was forecast across southern Greece on Wednesday, with hopes it could help in the firefighting effort.