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Wildfires force evacuation of Greek island

People have been forced to evacuate the Greek island of Evia to safety by sea due to raging wildfires.

More than 2,000 have already been evacuated, with elderly residents carried onto ferries.

Evia, a large island to the north-east of Athens, has seen two fires destroy thousands of hectares of land, along with a number of houses and businesses.

Firefighters have been struggling to keep fires at bay in a number of villages on the island.

Local officials told the BBC not enough help had been sent to fight the fires, adding that parts of the island had already been destroyed.

Greece is undergoing its most severe heatwave in 30 years with temperatures as high as 45C.

A number of wildfires have struck the country in recent days. One blaze in the northern suburb of Athens is said to have subsided.

Fires in the Peloponnese region are said to be stable.

Turkey is also fighting a series of wildfires, described as the worst in the country’s history.

Eight people have died and thousands have been forced to flee their homes.

The country’s agriculture and forestry minister said on Saturday that 217 fires had been contained and six were said to be ongoing.

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