A woman has been arrested by Greek police in connection with a series of wildfires on the Greek island of Chios.
Blazes broke out on Sunday and tore through 10,000 acres of mainly bush and pasture land in three days, according to Greece’s climate crisis and civil protection ministry.
The fire brigade said in a statement that a Georgian national was arrested on Tuesday night and authorities were still investigating the cause.
She has been charged with unintentional arson, according to the Reuters news agency, which quoted two fire brigade officials who also said that witnesses had allegedly seen her drop a cigarette.
Farmland has been left scorched. Pic: Reuters
The monastery of Nea Moni was spared from the wildfires. Pic: Reuters
The wildfires have been largely contained, but hundreds of firefighters remain on Chios to prevent any embers from triggering a fresh blaze, the Greek fire brigade said.
Firefighters, seen here on Sunday, were brought in from across Greece. Pic: Politischios.gr/AP
Helicopters were also deployed to drop water on the fires.
Pic: Reuters
On Tuesday, authorities declared a state of emergency and issued multiple evacuation orders for Chios, where towering walls of flames tore through forest and agricultural land on the island.
Firefighting reinforcements were sent from Athens, the northern city of Thessaloniki and the nearby island of Lesbos.
The fire department said 444 firefighters with 85 vehicles were deployed to tackle the blaze, with 11 helicopters and two water-dropping planes also providing air support.
Officials had also sent an arson investigation team to Chios to examine the cause of the blaze.
Firefighters took three days to bring the wildfires under control. Pic: Reuters
Locals were told to evacuate the village of Agios Georgios Sikousis on Monday. Pic: Reuters
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Greece is often hit by wildfires during its hot and dry summers, but authorities say the fast-changing climate is fuelling more destructive blazes.
The Greek government has paid hundreds of millions of euros in damages related to extreme weather to households and farmers, and to update firefighting equipment.
It has also increased the number of firefighters to a record 18,000 this year in anticipation of a challenging fire season.
They are being supported by 294 firefighters from five European countries from July to mid-September.
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