Athens, August 2: Two firefighting helicopters collided on Sunday afternoon while combating a large wildfire in western Attica, Greece. According to Greece’s national broadcaster ERT, both helicopters crashed near the coastal area of Psatha shortly after the collision, prompting a large-scale rescue operation.
One helicopter’s pilot contacted the fire service’s operations center to report that the co-pilot was injured. However, there was no immediate information available regarding the crew of the second helicopter, as reported by the Xinhua News Agency.
Meanwhile, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced on Thursday that the national emergency declared for wildfires in the provinces of Ávila and the Madrid region is being lifted. He stated that the fire situation in these areas is largely under control. However, in other parts of the country, new heatwaves and strong winds have kept some fires active.
At the emergency command center in Navaluenga, Ávila, Sánchez explained that the decision was made after discussions with regional authorities and technical experts. The management of the emergency will now be handed back to regional governments and will be handled at a lower operational level, known as Level-2.
The fire in the Burgohondo area of Ávila has burned over 50,000 hectares, marking it as the largest wildfire in Spain’s history. The fire has been technically declared stable, and those who were evacuated have been allowed to return home.
According to the European Forest Fire Information System, approximately 130,000 hectares of land in Spain have been affected by fires since the beginning of this year.
Thousands of firefighters, soldiers, police officers, and civil protection personnel have been deployed in the affected areas. The Military Emergency Unit continues to play a key role in safeguarding communities and critical infrastructure while assisting regional firefighting teams.
Spain has also activated the European Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism, with Greece and Italy providing two Canadair firefighting planes each, along with an additional support aircraft.
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