At least 120 square kilometres of land were scorched in one of the largest wildfires in Cyprus' history. The remains of two people were discovered in a charred vehicle on a main road between hilltop villages affected by the blaze.
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Firefighters in Cyprus on Thursday battled the country's largest wildfires in more than 50 years, which have two people dead and caused the destruction of homes, as well as the evacuation of dozens of villages.
The wildfires have scorched at least 120 square kilometres of land, making them the most destructive since 1974 when fires raged during the island's invasion by the Turkish military in July 1974. Around 260 square kilometres of land were burned at the time, according to the Cyprus Forestry Department.
This week's wildfires, which broke out at around noon on Wednesday, have destroyed just over 1% of the island's land mass.
Police found the bodies of two people in a burned-out car. Cypriot Civil Defence personnel found one body inside the vehicle on Wednesday night on the main road between fire-hit hillside villages, the police first reported.
The remains of a second person were then discovered in the same car on Thursday on the shoulder of the Monagri-Alassa road.
Two people were evacuated with extensive burns to the Nicosia General Hospital, with their condition being considered serious but not critical, according to Charalambos Harilaou, a health service spokesperson. 10 people were injured in total.
The fire also led to the evacuation of 14 villages along a 14-kilometre stretch of mountainous terrain.
Fires continue to rage
Although on Thursday morning it was announced that there were no active fires remaining, some areas subsequently saw a rekindling, with some spreading later in the day.
Additional wildfires broke out in the western Paphos district on Thursday afternoon.
Kettis said earlier in the day that strong winds were expected to pick up and, combined with the intense heat, the situation could again become very dangerous.
Many roads remained closed, with civilian rescues ongoing.
Kettis confirmed that "there has been significant damage to some residences", with at least 20 homes in the village of Lofou thought to have been destroyed.
Over 250 firefighters were attempting to extinguish the flames as of Wednesday night, with aerial support coming from 18 aircraft.
The fire's cause is under investigation
Cypriot government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis said that the cause of the fire is still being investigated, while pointing to "unprecedented conditions" for its spread.
He rejected any suggestions that the government had been "negligent" in its response, pointing to "the temperatures, strong winds, and drought" as factors that "aggravated the situation and made it even more difficult.” He insisted that "from the very first moment, all the plans and all the protocols which had been drawn up were activated."
Separately, Chief Fire Officer Nicos Logginos told public broadcaster CyBC that eye witnesses who called the fire service had reported arsonists had caused the fire to break out at two separate points, within 100 metres from each other, at a landfill. He added that he had provided evidence to the police in order to aid its investigation.
Assistance from abroad
Cypriot government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis said Nicosia had requested support from other countries.
Spain is sending two firefighting aircraft, and Jordan is providing assistance with two of its helicopters, he said.
A British helicopter from one of the UK's two military bases on Cyprus is also assisting, Letymbiotis added. Meanwhile, Israel announced it would be sending aircraft of its own on Thursday evening.