Wildfire in Athens' coastal suburbs under control

A wildfire in southern Athens' coastal suburbs was under control on Sunday. The Greek Fire Service was still fighting the blaze that broke out near two Athens suburbs on Saturday.

Authorities ordered the evacuation of parts of the southern Athens suburbs of Voula and Glyfada as a precaution when strong winds fanned the blaze and threatened residential areas.

Hot and dry weather make Greece especially vulnerable to wildfires during summer. Last August, wildfires devastated the northern half of the island of Evia, Greece's second largest. 

On Thursday, the European Commission said that more than 200 firefighters and technical equipment provided by EU countries will be soon deployed to Greece to allow for a swift response to large wildfires.