helicopters keep returning here to try and put out this fire but it isn t working yet. this is the main north south motorway near athens but it s been closed for two days because of all the fires around here and the strong scorching winds aren t helping. as the fire spreads down the hillside, people are frightened for their houses. panicked screams. in athens, their screams for help as the flames grow closer. people are desperately trying to put out the fires in any way they can. thousands of people have been evacuated. this lady in athens told me she is worried for her family. a big national tragedy. do you live around here? i don t live here. my sister lives here. but it s horrible, for the whole of greece.
or, as many are beginning to fear, will all about disappear, too? it is an extraordinary will all about disappear, too? it is an extraordinary situation to in almost 20 years to the month since the first foreign troops entered afghanistan. pauladams, our afghanistan. paul adams, our diplomatic afghanistan. pauladams, our diplomatic correspondent, thank you very much. the prime minister of greece, kyriakos mitsotakis says the country must urgently change its approach to fire prevention and flood protection. more than 700 firefighters are tackling wildfires that have broken out across the country after the worst heatwave in 30 years including in the capital athens, where one volunteer firefighter died after being hit by a falling electricity pole. these images show some of the thousands of people have been evacuated from areas surrounding the capital. in the villiage of limni more than a thousand people fled on ferry boats as the fires closed in. translation: i want to reassure all t
everyone hopes today is a first taste of real lasting freedom. but for now, few are getting carried away. hywel griffith, bbc news, maesteg. britain is sending firefighters to greece, to help battle flames that have forced thousands of people to flee their homes. more than 150 wildfires are burning across the country, some close to the northern suburbs of athens. two people are known to have died and at least 20 others have been injured. greece, like many parts of europe, has been grappling with extreme weather this summer. widespread flooding and colder than average temperatures in central europe and now baking hot weather in the south. our europe correspondent, bethany bell, reports from athens. greece is in the grip of an emergency. wildfires have been blazing out of control for days. the extreme heat means these forests near athens are like a tinderbox.
they are my first priority. all the burns and will be be forested and we change the way we carry out fire prevention works. change the way we carry out fire prevention works. bethany bell is in malakasa near athens. this is the main north south motorway near athens but it has been closed for two days because of all the fires that keep breaking out abound here. we have seen over the past half an hour or so, helicopters coming back here time and time again, trying to put out the blazes on these mountainsides. but it is not working yet and the strong scorching wrens are making things very difficult for the emergency services. international help is on its way. people are trying to do as much as they can but this is really what the authorities are saying, really unprecedented situation. annette saw the area around her home burn,
this was the scene on the island of evia last night. ferries carried hundreds of people to safety after they fled to the beaches. safe on board, one man filmed the inferno on his phone. the fire burned through a vast area of pine forests. only the sea could stop it. tonight, evia is still burning and the flames are spreading towards one of the island s largest towns. bethany bell, bbc news, athens. that s it. i ll be back with the late news at 10:10. now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. bye for now. good evening from bbc london and bbc south east. walk in vaccine centres are open across london