Two people have been killed, including a firefighter, as uncontrolled wildfires spread across Greece.
Huge clouds of smoke are billowing over the northern outskirts of the capital, Athens, where people are being urged to leave their homes.
More than 150 fires have been reported. Six areas have been put on high alert.
Greece, like many parts of Europe, has been grappling with extreme weather. The prime minister says a heatwave has turned the country into a powder keg.
Hundreds of firefighters are trying to control the fires with nearly 20 water-bombing aircraft. Extra firefighters and planes are being sent in from countries including France and the US.
Fanned by unpredictable winds, the worst blazes are around the north of Athens. A 38-year-old volunteer firefighter was killed by a falling electricity pole in a suburb of the city.
The other victim was the president of the Athens Chamber of Commerce, Konstantinos Michalos. He was found unconscious in a factory close to where a fire was raging.
A further 20 people have been injured.
Thousands of people have been ordered to leave their homes outside Athens as the blaze tore through houses, cars and businesses.
Fires are also raging on the nearby island of Evia, and areas close to ancient Olympia, the birthplace of the Olympic Games.
"Wildfires of unprecedented intensity and spread, all our forces are fighting the battle day and night to save lives, together with volunteers," government minister Nikos Hardalias said.
Hundreds of residents and tourists on Evia have been evacuated aboard ferries and fishing boats, as wildfires closed in on its shores.
"We're talking about the apocalypse, I don't know how to describe it," Sotiris Danikas, a coastguard official on the island, told broadcaster ERT.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis says the fires show "the reality of climate change". Temperatures in the country have been above 40C (107 degrees Fahrenheit) all week.
Smell of smoke, ash on the ground
By Bethany Bell BBC News, Athens
The air in northern Athens is full of the smell of smoke, and there is a thin layer of ash on the ground. People from some of the outer suburbs have been evacuated from their homes.
Last night, one man stared in horror as the flames headed down the mountainside towards his house.
Planes and helicopters carrying water to drop on the flames flew overhead, but emergency crews are struggling to stop the wildfires from spreading.
The strong, hot winds are not helping. Greece, like much of the rest of Europe, has been grappling with extreme weather this summer.
In neighbouring Turkey, authorities are battling the country's worst-ever wildfires.
Eight people have been killed and tens of thousands evacuated along the southern coast. Six more neighbourhoods near a power station were evacuated on Friday.
Climate change increases the risk of the hot, dry weather that is likely to fuel wildfires.
The world has already warmed by about 1.2C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.
- EXPLAINER: The burning issue of wildfires
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2021-08-07 08:37:24Z
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