New evacuations ordered in Greece as high winds and heat fuel wildfires

By MICHAEL VARAKLAS and DEREK GATOPOULOS
Associated Press

RHODES, Greece (AP) — A week-old wildfire on the Greek resort island of Rhodes has torn past defenses, forcing more evacuations. Strong winds and successive heat waves fueled three major fires raging elsewhere in Greece. The latest evacuations were ordered in south Rhodes after 19,000 people, mostly tourists, were moved in buses and boats over the weekend out of the path of the fire that reached several coastal areas from nearby mountains. Additional evacuations took place overnight on the islands of Corfu and Evia and on the southern mainland. Heat wave conditions are expected to persist through Thursday. Wildfires also burned in Sicily on Monday.