Reuters. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Thursday (July 27) said Greece needed to take more steps to combat the effects of climate change as wildfires in the central part of the country flared up, forcing more evacuations, and an explosion at an ammunition depot.
Powerful explosions were heard from the ammunition depot in the coastal town of Nea Aghialos, Greek state television ERT reported.
Video showed thick plumes of smoke billowing into the sky, as helicopters gathered water to douse the flames and locals evacuated the area.
Citing unnamed sources, ERT said the ammunition depot belonged to the Greek air forces. There were no immediate reports of injuries.
The blazes across the country, which have been supercharged by strong winds and temperatures exceeding 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), killed two more people in central Greece on Wednesday, taking the death toll from the fires to five.
Since Wednesday, officials have ordered the evacuation of several communities in the hard-hit area of Magnesia, a coastal area north of Athens. More people were forced to evacuate on Thursday, some via private speed boats, and head to the nearby port city of Volos, as flames rekindled.
