Two fatalities were recorded and approximately 500 residents were evacuated by sea following the outbreak of two fires on Salamina, a Greek island located west of Athens with a population of around 37,000. The first fire was reported at 14:40 local time in a forested residential area in the southern city of Peristeria, while a second blaze ignited roughly 20 minutes later in the eastern town of Selinia. Strong winds contributed to the rapid spread of the initial fire, though the precise cause of both fires remains under investigation.
Authorities deployed approximately 200 firefighters to the island to combat the twin blazes and prevent them from converging across a mountain ridge, which would have created a single large fire. The response effort included 50 fire engines, multiple aircraft, water tankers, construction machinery, and numerous vessels from the coast guard and fire department. By Sunday evening, one of the fires had been brought under control and evacuations were completed, though firefighters continued to address scattered blazes in the Peristeria area overnight.
Two bodies were discovered at the scene in Peristeria, believed to be a couple according to the city’s mayor. An additional 10 people sustained burn injuries or experienced smoke inhalation symptoms, with five requiring local medical treatment, according to Greek Health Minister Adonis Georgiades. Coast guard and fire department vessels remained in the area for ongoing surveillance and assistance.
The fires on Salamina occurred amid a broader pattern of wildfires affecting Europe during the same period. Firefighters in Belgium were simultaneously contending with their largest nature reserve fire in recent history at Hautes Fagnes, while Croatia had recently experienced a major coastal wildfire that resulted in at least one death and prompted the evacuation of approximately 1,200 residents and tourists.
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