One person dead as firefighters battle huge wildfire on fringes of Athens

The blaze started Sunday near Lake Marathon, about 35 kilometers northeast of Athens, coursed across Mount Pendeli and reached the capital’s northern suburbs

A volunteer tries to extinguish the fire in northern Athens on Monday, August 12. Picture: AP Photo/Aggelos Barai

A major wildfire raged across the northern suburbs of Athens on Monday, leaving at least one person dead and triggering multiple evacuations as swirling winds hampered the efforts of hundreds of firefighters and dozens of water-dropping planes.

The fire department said shortly after midnight that firefighters found a body in a burnt building in the suburb of Vrilissia, but was unable to immediately provide further details.