Athens, July 4 (QNA) - Greek Civil Defense teams are fighting to extinguish a new wildfire that broke out Friday near the capital, Athens, after a fire that had been raging on the island of Crete for three days began to subside.

The Civil Defense said in a statement that a fire broke out in Koropi, 30 kilometers east of Athens, forcing it to issue warnings to residents to leave this semi-urban area, which includes many homes surrounded by woods.

The city's mayor, Dimitris Kioussis, said in a statement that "the fire has reached the courtyards of homes." His deputy, Theodoris Grivas, confirmed that the fire was raging and that all residents in the areas at risk had been evacuated.

The extent of the disaster was not disclosed, despite the use of at least two water bombers and two helicopters to extinguish the flames, which were fanned by strong winds in Attica, Athens, and the surrounding region.

This comes a day after a fire that broke out last Thursday afternoon due to strong winds being contained.

The fire affected ferry traffic to tourist destinations such as Mykonos and destroyed homes and cars, necessitating the evacuation of approximately 300 people near the port of Rafina, about 30 kilometers east of Athens.

On the island of Crete, one of the country's most popular tourist destinations, a fire that broke out last Wednesday afternoon necessitated the evacuation of 3,000 tourists and 2,000 residents on Wednesday night.

The fire service announced that the blaze had begun to subside in this area, but there is a fear that the flames could flare up again in some areas, despite the majority of it being extinguished.

Approximately 230 firefighters, 48 ​​vehicles, and six helicopters were placed on alert near the coastal city of Ierapetra, as fires continued to burn in some areas and heavy smoke blanketed some areas.

Firefighters remain on alert in this area near Athens International Airport due to the risk of the fires reigniting due to strong winds, although Greece has so far been relatively spared from the heatwave that has hit parts of Europe, most notably Spain, Portugal, and France. (QNA)