Greek firefighters battled on Wednesday to bring under control a wildfire that has devastated over 4,000 hectares (10,000 acres) of land on Chios, Greece’s fifth-largest island, over the past four days.
The island, located in the northern Aegean Sea, is currently grappling with five separate fires.
“The fire has not yet been fully contained but its intensity is diminishing,” a fire service official told AFP.
Authorities have deployed around 400 firefighters, supported by 85 vehicles, four water-bombing planes, and seven helicopters, though sporadic flare-ups persist mainly in the island’s southern areas.
A Georgian woman employed as a house cleaner was detained on Tuesday after confessing to discarding a cigarette butt that is believed to have sparked the blaze, according to reports from the Greek news agency ANA and fire officials.

The wildfire prompted the evacuation of hundreds of asylum seekers from a reception centre shortly after it began on Sunday, followed by the evacuation of seven villages on Monday.
Officials expressed concern over the fire’s proximity to valuable mastic tree groves, known for their aromatic resin used in chewing gum, alcoholic beverages, and pharmaceuticals.
Mastic is Chios’s most renowned product and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage item.
Greece has faced increasing wildfire risks in recent years, exacerbated by strong winds, prolonged drought, and soaring temperatures linked to climate change.
Meteorologists forecast a heatwave in the coming days, with temperatures expected to exceed 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), including in Athens.