New Fires Break Out on Greek Islands of Corfu and Evia: ‘We Are at War’

As the Greek island of Rhodes undergoes a mass evacuation that ranks among the biggest in the country's history, new wildfires have erupted on the isles of Corfu and Evia, at least one of which is believed to have been started intentionally, according to officials.

Speaking to state news agency APA-MPA, Giorgos Mahimaris, the mayor of North Corfu, said he believes the fire on that island was the result of arson, noting that the assessment was made after visiting three locations where the fires broke out on Mount Pantokratoras.

"There were four fires that started simultaneously," he said.

"We have to wait for the investigation, but their first unofficial assumption is that it was arson - fires can't start simultaneously in four different places,” Theofanis Skembris, deputy mayor of North Corfu, told BBC. He said those blazes are now mostly "under control."

Officials also told BBC that they had "suspicion" fires would be started this weekend, after being warned by a fire service chief on Friday that someone who started two fires last week would try again.

Meanwhile, in Rhodes, a vacation spot popular with British tourists, at least 19,000 people have been evacuated due to the fires, which are also being investigated as possible arson.

In an interview with Daily Mirror on Sunday Vassilis Vathrakogiannis of the Rhodes Fire Department said that the "fires are set by human hands.”

"Whether it is due to negligence or fraud will be seen. People have been summoned for statements and others will be summoned,” Vathrakogiannis said.

According to Neoskosmos, authorities in Rhodes have questioned a Greek man in connection with the Rhodes blazes.

No charges have been filed yet and the man's name has not been disclosed.

Hundreds of fires have started across Greece in the last week as bone-dry conditions and strong wind met a continent-wide heat wave that is blanketing southern Europe with some of the hottest temperatures on record for the region.

In Athens, the Acropolis has been closed twice this month during the afternoon hours when temperatures reached as high as 118 degrees Fahrenheit. Workers at that attraction have also been striking in protest of having to endure the heat.

“We are at war,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said during a meeting of parliament on Monday. “The climate crisis is already here.”