Greece's 'Pompeii': At least 74 dead as wildfires rage

Wildfires sweeping througha Greek resort town killed at least 74people, including families with children found clasped in a last embraceas they tried to flee the flames.

The inferno was by far Greece's worst since fires devastatedthe southern Peloponnese peninsula in August 2007, killingdozens. It broke out in Mati late Monday afternoon and was stillburning in some areas on Tuesday.

"Greece is going through an unspeakable tragedy," PrimeMinister Alexis Tsipras said as he appeared on television to declare three days of national mourning.

Emergency crews found one group of 26 victims, some of themyoungsters, lying close together near the top of a cliff overlooking a beach.They had ended up there after apparentlysearching for an escape route.

"Instinctively, seeing the end nearing, they embraced," NikosEconomopoulos, head of Greece's Red Cross, told Skai TV.

By Tuesday afternoon, the Mati fire was contained, but the risk remained of it reigniting in scrubland parched by Greece's searing summer heat.

Coast guard vessels and other boats rescued almost 700 peoplewho had managed to get to the shoreline and plucked another 19survivors and four dead bodies from the sea, the coast guardsaid.

The Greek government said Italy is dispatching two Canadair firefighting planes and Romania is sending a third aircraft to help combat the fires.

Nikos Toskas, the country's public order minister,said late Tuesday the aircraft are expected to arrive Wednesday morning to bolster firefighting efforts. Toskas said that if necessary, Greece would ask other European Union member states for additional help.

EU Humanitarian Aid CommissionerChristosStylianidessaid the 28-member bloc will take steps to upgrade its response to natural disasters that have been exacerbated by climate change.

A Reuters photographer saw at least four dead people on anarrow road clogged with cars heading to a beach.

"Residents and visitors in the area did not escape in timeeven though they were a few metres from the sea or in their homes," fire brigade spokespersonStavroula Maliri said.

In total, at least 74 people had been killed, according to thefire brigade, and the death toll was expected to rise. Poland said two of its citizens, a mother and her son, wereamong the victims.

"We went into the sea, because the flames were chasing us allthe way to the water. It burned our backs and we dove into thewater," said Kostas Laganos, a middle-aged survivor, whocompared the ordeal to the destruction of the city ofPompeii, where thousands were incinerated by the volcano ofMount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

It was unclear how many people remained unaccounted for ascoast guard vessels combed beaches to find any remainingsurvivors, with military hospitals on full alert, a governmentspokesperson said.

One of the youngest victims was thought to be asix-month-old baby who died of smoke inhalation, officials said. At least 187 people were injured, among those 23 children.

Deadly fires rage in southern Greece

6 years ago

Duration 1:34

More than 60 dead, many dozens injured as wildfires devastate region near Athens

Mati, 29 kilometres east of the capital, is a popularspot for Greek holiday-makers, particularly pensioners and children at camps.

Greece's fire brigade said the intensity and spread of thewildfire at Mati had slowed on Tuesday as winds died down, butit was still not fully under control. The service urgedresidents to report missing relatives and friends.

'Killer fire'

White smoke rose from smouldering fires in parts of Matiearly on Tuesday. Burned-out cars were scattered outside gatedcompounds where three- and four-storey buildings bore signs offire damage.

"It is a difficult night for Greece," said Prime MinisterAlexis Tsipras, looking pale after returning from a visit to Bosnia.

Greece issued an urgent appeal for help to tackle fires thatraged out of control in several places across the country, destroying homes and disrupting major transport links.

Newspaper printed banner headlines including "Killer Fire"and "Hell" and reported fears the death toll would climb.

Tsipras and Greek officials have expressed misgivings at thefact that several major fires broke out at the same time.

Wildfires are not uncommon in Greece, and a relatively drywinter helped create the current tinder-box conditions. It was not immediately clear what ignited the fires.

A hillside of homes was gutted by flames east of Athens. Amayor said he saw at least 100 homes and 200 vehicles burning.

Earlier on Monday, Greek authorities urged residents of acoastal region west of Athens to abandon their homes as anotherwildfire burned ferociously, closing one of Greece's busiestmotorways, halting train links and sending plumes of smoke overthe capital.