At least 49 persons were killed during a devastating forest fire which broke out east of Athens on Monday, a senior fire brigade official said. The blaze which hit Mati, 29 km (18 miles) east of the capital, late Monday afternoon looks set to be the country's worst since flames devastated the southern Peloponnese peninsula in August 2007, killing dozens. People scrambled to the sea as the blaze closed in close to the shore. Hundreds were rescued by passing boats but others found their way blocked by smoke and flames. "I was briefed by a rescuer that he saw the shocking picture of 26 people tightly huddled in a field some 30 metres from the beach," Nikos Economopoulos, head of Greece's Red Cross, told Skai TV.

Cyprus and Spain offered assistance after Greece said it needed air and land assets from European Union partners. But the country is not the only one to be suffering from devastating wildfires. A revealing map from the European Forest Fire Information System showed the shocking extent of the fires sweeping Europe. And it seems along with Greece, Sweden and Italy have been hit hard by the recent heatwave.

Wildfires have broken out across Europe - and this wildfire map below shows exactly where the blazes have broken out in the last day. The map shows the biggest concentration of fires in Greece is centred around Kineta, to the west of Athens. While one on the east coast, near Nea Makri, is where 26 bodies were found today. More than 70 firefighters with 30 fire engines and five water-dropping helicopters battled the blaze, while some householders took up hosepipes to douse the flames which broke out near Kineta, about 54 km (35 miles) west of the city. To view the live map, click here.

Sweden is also fighting a historic amount of large wildfires as the country is experiencing its worst drought since records began. The four biggest fires, which make up 20,000 hectares, are ”impossible” to extinguish due to their magnitude according to officials. And so far, up to 500 people have been evacuated from their homes during the worst wildfires to hit Sweden since records began. "I want to make this clear: the biggest fires will not be possible to extinguish right now,” Dan Eliasson, director-general of Sweden’s Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) told Swedish Radio on Friday.</s>A firestorm that swept through a seaside resort town near the Greek capital killed at least 60 people, including families with children found clasped in a last embrace on a beach as they tried to flee the flames, officials said.

The two largest wildfires — one 20 miles northeast of Athens near Rafina, the other 30 miles west of the capital in Kineta — broke out Monday during hot, dry summer conditions.

Fanned by gale-force winds that frequently changed direction, the flames spread rapidly into populated seaside towns — too fast for many who were in their cars or homes to flee, fire department spokeswoman Stavroula Malliri said.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared a three-day national mourning period for those killed in the wildfires, Sky News reported.

In Rafina, rescue workers found the bodies of 26 people huddled together near a beach.

“They had tried to find an escape route but unfortunately these people and their kids didn’t make it in time. Instinctively, seeing the end nearing, they embraced,” Nikos Economopoulos, the head of Greece’s Red Cross, told Skai TV.

Many tourists and residents fled toward the coastline to escape the ferocious flames and choking smoke. Authorities evacuated more than 700 people by sea overnight, said Merchant Marine deputy minister Nektarios Santorinios, whose ministry is in charge of the coast guard.

But some didn’t make it to the beach. The head of Greece’s Red Cross, Nikos Oikonomopoulos, told Skai television that a Red Cross rescue team reported finding the 26 bodies in a compound northeast of Athens. In all, the death toll stood at 50 by Tuesday morning, government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said.

“Everything happened in seconds,” said Andreaas Passios, who lives next to the compound. “I grabbed a beach towel. It saved my life. I soaked it, grabbed my wife and we ran to the sea.”

Passios said he and his wife stayed by the sea for two hours: “It was unbelievable. Gas canisters were exploding. Burning pine cones were flying everywhere.”

When the flames died down, Spyros Hadjiandreou came searching for loved ones.

“My niece and cousin were staying here on holiday. I don’t know if they made it out,” he said. “I don’t know if they are OK. I haven’t heard from them.”

“We were unlucky,” he said. “The wind changed and it came at us with such force that it razed the coastal area in minutes.”

Tzanakopoulos, the government spokesman, said 715 people were evacuated from beaches and coastline by navy vessels, yachts and fishing boats. The coast guard said 19 people were rescued at sea, some of whom had swum out to escape the flames.

Rafina’s dock became a makeshift hospital during the night as paramedics checked survivors, some of them clad in only their bathing suits, emerging from coast guard vessels and private boats. The fire department said 156 adults and 16 children were hospitalized with injuries. Eleven of the adults were in serious condition.

In all, 47 brush and forest fires broke out across Greece Monday and early Tuesday, with most of them quickly extinguished, the fire department said. Ten were still burning late Tuesday morning, including blazes in Corinth, Crete, and in central and northern Greece.

More than 400 firefighters and volunteer firefighters were battling the two fires near Athens, supported by seven water-dropping helicopters and three aircraft.

Greece sought international help through the European Union. Spain was sending two firefighting aircraft while Cyprus was sending in 60 firefighters. Israel and Turkey both also offered assistance.

It was the deadliest fire season to hit Greece in more than a decade. More than 60 people were killed in 2007 when huge fires swept across the southern Peloponnese region.

“It’s a difficult night for Greece,” Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said late Monday after cutting short a trip to Bosnia and returning to Athens.

Showers that passed over the Greek capital Monday missed the two big fires, but heavy rain was forecast across southern Greece on Wednesday.

Forest fires are common in Greece during the hot, dry summers, and temperatures recently hit highs up to 104 Fahrenheit.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.</s>It was a frightening scene in Greece overnight as wildfires broke out in two locations near Athens and near Kineta, killing at least 60 and injuring 150, reports Sky News. Over 600 firefighters are there, with other countries wanting to send help. Croatia has offered to send firefighting planes, and Israel has also offered to send aid as has the head of the EU, with more countries sure to follow suit. In one horror scene near the seaside town of Mati, rescue workers found 26 bodies huddled together. Greece has declared a state of emergency and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has said the country is in a three-day mourning period for those killed during this tragedy.

“Fanned by gale-force winds that frequently changed direction, the flames spread rapidly into populated seaside towns — too fast for many who were in their cars or homes to flee, fire department spokeswoman Stavroula Malliri said,” as reported by Fox News.

One of the fires broke out 20 miles northeast of Athens near Rafina, while the other occurred 30 miles west of the capital in Kineta. It has been a hot, dry summer in Greece and there were gale-force winds, therefore providing a perfect recipe for the forest fires to happen and spread quickly.

More than 700 people, both tourists and residents, were evacuated by boat overnight, as people instinctively headed to the coast to try to find help in escaping the flames, according to Merchant Marine deputy minister Nektarios Santorinios.

“Everything happened in seconds,” Andreaas Passios, who lives northeast of Athens, told the AP. “I grabbed a beach towel. It saved my life. I soaked it, grabbed my wife and we ran to the sea.”

Another survivor, Nikos Stavrinidis, also told the AP about the fast-moving flames and how he and others had fled to the sea and were swept out. After two hours in the water, he was scooped up by an Egyptian crew on a fishing boat. Two that he had escaped with didn’t survive.

“What upsets me and what I will carry in my heart is that it is terrible to see the person next to you drowning and not being able to help him. You can’t. That’s the only tragic thing – that will stay with me.”

More and more countries are sending their condolences and offers of help as rescue and recovery efforts continue in the light of day. This has been the deadliest fire season for Greece in more than a decade.</s>The Latest on wildfires raging in Greece (all times local):

Officials in Poland say a Polish woman and her son drowned when their boat capsized during evacuation from wildfires in Greece.

Janusz Smigielski, deputy head of the Poznan-based Grecos office, said Tuesday that the two were vacationing in the resort of Mati, east of Athens. He said they drowned during the evacuation of 10 people by boat on Wednesday night, and that he was still waiting for Greek authorities to give details about the accident.

Smigielski said that a further 435 Grecos clients in the Athens region have been moved to hotels in safe areas.

Poland's Foreign Ministry has appealed to Poles in Greece to be very cautious.

Croatia has offered two Canadair aircraft to help Greece battle wildfires that have killed dozens of people near Athens.

Defense Minister Damir Krsticevic said Tuesday Croatia is preparing the planes so they are ready to go to Greece if needed there.

At least 50 people have been killed and more than 100 injured in the wildfires. Croatia has said that none of its citizens are among the victims.

Wildfires also are common in Croatia in dry and windy weather during hot summers along the Adriatic Sea coast.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is offering her country's help to fight the forest fires raging in Greece.

In a message of condolence sent to Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Tuesday, Merkel said that "in these difficult hours Germany stands firmly by the side of our Greek friends."

She added: "You can be sure of our willingness to provide support in coping with the fire disaster."

Wildfires raging through seaside resorts near Athens have killed at least 50 people.

Italy is offering two Canadair aircraft to help Greece battle wildfires that have killed dozens of people near Athens.

Premier Giuseppe Conte on Tuesday tweeted Italy's support for Greece and condolences for those who have died. He announced Italy was making the two water-dropping aircraft available.

Italy routinely experiences summertime wildfires, particularly in the south. Late Monday firefighters in Sicily brought the latest one under control near Acireale, with the help of two Canadairs.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has declared three days of national mourning for the dozens killed in the wildfires that swept through seaside areas near Athens. Many people fled to beaches, with some swimming out to sea to escape the choking smoke.

Wildfires raged through seaside resorts near the Greek capital, torching homes, cars and forests and killing at least 50 people, authorities said Tuesday. Twenty-six of the dead were believed to be groups of families or friends who were found huddled together, some of them hugging.

Rescue crews were searching the charred remains of homes and cars in the deadliest of the fires, the one in the Rafina area northeast of Athens, and there were fears the death toll could rise. More than 170 people were treated in hospitals for injuries including burns.

The country's prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, declared three days of national mourning for those killed in the deadliest fire season to hit Greece in more than a decade.

With the flames whipped up by gale-force winds that frequently changed direction, many tourists and residents fled toward the coastline. Some swam out to sea, braving rough water and strong currents to escape the ferocious flames and choking smoke. A flotilla of boats, including some from the coast guard, evacuated more than 700 people by sea from threatened beaches overnight, authorities said.

"It happened very fast. The fire was in the distance, then sparks from the fire reached us. Then the fire was all around us," said resident Nikos Stavrinidis, who had gone with his wife to fix up his summer home for a visit by his daughter.

Stavrinidis, his wife and four friends swam out into the sea to escape the smoke, but they quickly became disoriented, losing sight of the shore and being swept out further by the wind and currents.

Two of the group didn't survive.

"It is terrible to see the person next to you drowning and not being able to help him," Stavrinidis said, his voice breaking. The remaining survivors were picked up by a fishing boat with an Egyptian crew who jumped into the water to rescue them.

Others never made it to the beach.

The head of Greece's Red Cross, Nikos Oikonomopoulos, told Skai television that a Red Cross rescue team found 26 bodies in a compound northeast of Athens, some of them clutching each other in groups of threes and fours.

"Everything happened in seconds," said Andreaas Passios, who lives next to the compound. "I grabbed a beach towel. It saved my life. I soaked it, grabbed my wife and we ran to the sea."

Passios said he and his wife stayed by the sea for two hours.

"It was unbelievable. Gas canisters were exploding. Burning pine cones were flying everywhere," he said.

When the flames died down, Spyros Hadjiandreou came searching for loved ones.

"My niece and cousin were staying here on holiday. I don't know if they made it out," he said. "I don't know if they are OK. I haven't heard from them."

The death toll stood at 50 by Tuesday morning, government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said.

By early afternoon, the Health Ministry's emergency operations said 71 adults continued to be hospitalized, 10 of them in serious condition. Twenty-three children were also being treated for injuries in hospitals, none of them in serious condition.

The two largest wildfires — one 30 kilometers (20 miles) northeast of Athens near Rafina, the other 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of the capital in Kineta — broke out Monday during hot, dry summer conditions. Fanned by gale-force winds, the flames spread rapidly into seaside towns, moving too fast for many who were in their cars or homes to flee, fire department spokeswoman Stavroula Malliri said.

"The police tried to direct us away from the fire, but we couldn't escape it," said Aleka Papariga, a former Greek Communist Party leader who lives near Rafina. "We got stuck in traffic and the flames were on top of us. We managed to find a small gap and we made it out."

Evangelos Bournous, the mayor of Rafina, blamed the winds.

"We were unlucky," he said. "The wind changed and it came at us with such force that it razed the coastal area in minutes."

Tzanakopoulos said 715 people were evacuated from beaches and the coastline by navy vessels, yachts and fishing boats. The coast guard said 19 people were rescued at sea, some of whom had swum out to escape the flames.

Rafina's dock became a makeshift hospital during the night as paramedics checked survivors, some clad in only their bathing suits, who emerged from coast guard vessels and private boats.

In all, 47 brush and forest fires broke out across Greece on Monday and early Tuesday, with most of them quickly extinguished, the fire department said. Ten were still burning late Tuesday morning, including blazes in Corinth, Crete and in central and northern Greece.

More than 400 firefighters and volunteer firefighters were battling the two fires near Athens, supported by seven water-dropping helicopters and three aircraft.

Greece sought international help through the European Union. Spain was sending two firefighting aircraft while Cyprus was sending in 60 firefighters. Israel and Turkey both also offered assistance.

Heavy rain was forecast across southern Greece on Wednesday, with hopes they could help in the firefighting effort.

Forest fires are common in Greece during the hot, dry summers, and temperatures recently reached up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit).

In 2007, more than 60 people were killed when huge fires swept across the southern Peloponnese region.

Becatoros reported from Athens. Associated Press writer Costas Kantouris in Thessaloniki contributed to this report.</s>Fire officials in Greece said Tuesday at least 49 people have been killed and more than 140 injured in wildfires raging through resort towns near the country's capital.

Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in areas east and west of Athens and deployed the army to help fight the blazes.

Athens has asked the European Union for aerial and ground support to help battle the flames. Greece said Cyprus offered to send firefighters, while Spain offered water-dropping aircraft. BBC News reported countries, including Italy, Germany, Poland and France, have sent planes, vehicles and firefighters.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras cut short a visit to Bosnia on Monday and returned to Athens to preside over an emergency-response meeting.

"We are doing everything humanly possible to try and tackle these fires," Tsipras said. "What concerns us is that there are fires occurring simultaneously."

The first fire broke out in a pine forest near the small town of Kineta, 50 kilometers west of Athens.

Three communities were evacuated, and the blaze shut down a nearly 20-kilometer section of a major highway.

High temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius have been predicted for Greece, and authorities have warned that the risk of forest fires is high. Wind gusts of up to 80 kph were hampering efforts to contain the blazes.

Another fire was burning northeast of Athens, in the Penteli area, moving into the town of Rafina. The mayor of Rafina estimated at least 100 homes have been destroyed.

The Greek coast guard sent boats to the area to evacuate residents trapped on the beach by the flames. It was also searching for a boat reported missing that was said to be carrying Danish tourists fleeing the fires.

A local fire chief went on state TV to appeal to people to leave the area after some tried to stay in their properties.

"People should leave, close up their homes and just leave. People cannot tolerate so much smoke for so many hours," Achilleas Tzouvaras said. "This is an extreme situation."</s>MATI, Greece (Reuters) - Greece’s prime minister told of the “unspeakable tragedy” the country faced after at least 74 people were killed by wildfires that swept through a resort, trapping people in cars and on the edge of cliffs as others were forced to jump off to survive.

The scale of Monday night’s devastation in Mati became apparent at first light on Tuesday.

Scores of gutted cars lined streets in the coastal town, east of Athens, melted by the intensity of the heat. Bodies lay on roadsides, and in one area, a group of 26 people were found dead - some locked in an embrace as the flames closed in.

The group, which included children, were found near the top of a cliff overlooking a beach. They had ended up there after apparently searching for an escape route.

“Instinctively, seeing the end nearing, they embraced,” the head of Greece’s Red Cross, Nikos Economopoulos, told Skai TV.

The lucky ones were able to leap off the cliffs to survive, or rush into the sea from the beach.

“We went into the sea because the flames were chasing us all the way to the water. It burned our backs and we dived into the water,” said Kostas Laganos, a middle-aged survivor.

He compared the ordeal to the destruction of the city of Pompeii, where thousands were incinerated by the volcano of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. “I said ‘my God, we must run to save ourselves and nothing else’.”

At least 74 people were killed, a fire brigade spokeswoman said, and the death toll was expected to rise. Poland said two of its citizens, a mother and her son, were among the victims.

It was not clear how many people remained unaccounted for as boats combed beaches for any remaining survivors.

Residents, their faces blackened by smoke, wandered the streets, some searching for their burned-out cars, others for their pets. The eerie silence was punctured by fire-fighting helicopters and the murmur of rescue crews. There were yellow body bags in several areas.

Many in the area had been unable to escape the fast pace of the blaze even though they were a few meters from the Aegean Sea or in their homes, the fire service said.

A Reuters photographer saw at least four dead people on a narrow road clogged with cars heading to a beach.

One of the youngest victims was believed to be a six-month-old baby who died of smoke inhalation. At least 187 people were injured, officials said, among those 23 children.

“Greece is going through an unspeakable tragedy,” Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said as he appeared on television to declare three days of national mourning.

“Greece is living one of its most difficult moments,” he said. “There are absolutely no words to describe how we feel right now.”

Flags atop the ancient Acropolis hill and parliament flew at half mast.

The inferno was thought to be Greece’s deadliest, with the death toll higher than fires which ravaged the southern Peloponnese peninsula over several days in August 2007, killing dozens.

By Tuesday afternoon, the Mati fire was contained, but the risk remained of it reigniting in scrubland parched by Greece’s searing summer heat.

Wildfires are not uncommon in Greece, and a relatively dry winter and hot summer helped create the current tinder-box conditions. The cause of the current blaze was not immediately clear and an Athens prosecutor ordered an investigation into it.

Mati is a popular spot for Greek holidaymakers, particularly pensioners and children at summer camps. One of the missing included a woman with multiple sclerosis, dragged out of her wheelchair by her frantic husband as the flames closed in, but lost in the ensuing chaos.

The fire service urged residents to report missing relatives and friends. Some took to Twitter and Facebook, posting photographs of young children and elderly couples they hoped to track down.

Greece issued an urgent appeal for help to tackle fires that raged out of control in several places across the country, destroying homes and disrupting major transport links.

Cyprus, Spain, Italy, Croatia and Portugal offered assistance after Greece said it needed air and land assets from European Union partners.

“Our thoughts go to Greece and the victims of the terrible fires,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in tweets published in French and Greek.

Pope Francis said in a telegram he was deeply saddened by the tragedy and prayed for the victims and their families.</s>Wildfires in Greece have killed at least 60 people and left more than 150 injured, with officials declaring a state of emergency.

The bodies of 26 of the dead - many of them huddled together - were discovered in the coastal village of Mati this morning.

Authorities fear they became "trapped in the flames" as they tried to escape to the sea.

The twin forest fires near Athens have sent hundreds of people, including tourists, racing to beaches to be evacuated by navy vessels, yachts and fishing boats.

Image: Hundreds of homes are being threatened by the fires

Image: People watch the fires burn from a hilltop above Mati

More than 700 people have been rescued by the coastguard.

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Greece's interior minister, Panos Skourletis, has described the fires as a "national tragedy" and a "biblical disaster with human losses".

Image: One of two wildfires raging near Athens started in seaside town Kineta

Strong winds have fanned the flames, which have spread rapidly into residential areas - preventing people who are in their homes or cars from escaping.

Kostas Laganos, who lives in Mati, said scenes in the town reminded him of the volcanic eruption of Pompeii.

Image: A woman tries to find her dog following the wildfire in Mati

Image: Cars have been destroyed in the village where 26 bodies were found

He told Sky News: "Thankfully the sea was there and we went into the sea because the flames were chasing us all the way to the water.

"It burned our backs so we dove into the water.

"It reminded me of the eruption at Pompeii - exactly that - and I said 'my God, we must run to save ourselves and nothing else'. It was terrible."

Here is @CopernicusEU Sentinel-2 satellite image of the deadly fires near Athens that killed dozens. Our thoughts are with victims and families in #Greece 🇬🇷. pic.twitter.com/lLP9emCqJw — WMO | OMM (@WMO) July 24, 2018

Image: The wildfires near Athens have claimed at least 49 lives

Some 156 adults and 16 children have been taken to hospital with injuries, including 11 adults who are in a serious condition.

More than 600 firefighters are involved in fighting the blazes and Greece has asked for help from European Union countries.

Wildfire destruction seen from the sky

The Spanish government has sent two water-dropping planes, while a military plane carrying 60 firefighters is arriving from Cyprus.

Greece's army has also been brought in to help.

Image: Residents of Mati are evacuated by sea

Flights have been diverted because of low visibility and the thick smoke from the fires has led to main motorways being shut down.

One fire is burning northeast of Athens in the Penteli area. The other blaze is raging through pine forests 31 miles (50km) west of Athens after starting in the seaside town of Kineta.

Image: Hundreds of firefighters are battling the blazes

Image: Firefighters, soldiers and local residents carry a hose in Rafina

Evangelos Bournous, mayor of the Rafina-Pikermi area, near Penteli, said he saw "at least 100 homes in flames", adding: "I saw it with my eyes - it is a real total catastrophe."

The state of emergency has been declared by regional authorities.

"This is an extreme situation," said senior firefighter Achilleas Tzouvaras.

Image: Thick smoke can be seen as people try to flee Kineta

Image: Smoke blankets a highway as a fire burns in Kineta

"People should leave - close up their homes and just leave.

"People cannot tolerate so much smoke for so many hours."

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said: "We are doing everything humanly possible to try and tackle these fires."

Having cut short a visit to Bosnia, he added: "What concerns us is that there are fires occurring simultaneously."

The worst fire season in Greece was in 2007, when large sections of forest and farmland were destroyed mainly in the country's south, and more than 60 people were killed.</s>Fire officials in Greece said Tuesday at least 49 people have been killed and more than 140 injured in wildfires raging through resort towns near the country’s capital.

Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in areas east and west of Athens and deployed the army to help fight the blazes.

Athens has asked the European Union for aerial and ground support to help battle the flames. Greece said Cyprus offered to send firefighters, while Spain offered water-dropping aircraft. BBC News reported countries, including Italy, Germany, Poland and France, have sent planes, vehicles and firefighters.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras cut short a visit to Bosnia on Monday and returned to Athens to preside over an emergency-response meeting.

“We are doing everything humanly possible to try and tackle these fires,” Tsipras said. “What concerns us is that there are fires occurring simultaneously.”

The first fire broke out in a pine forest near the small town of Kineta, 50 kilometers west of Athens.

Three communities were evacuated, and the blaze shut down a nearly 20-kilometer section of a major highway.

High temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius have been predicted for Greece, and authorities have warned that the risk of forest fires is high. Wind gusts of up to 80 kph were hampering efforts to contain the blazes.

Another fire was burning northeast of Athens, in the Penteli area, moving into the town of Rafina. The mayor of Rafina estimated at least 100 homes have been destroyed.

The Greek coast guard sent boats to the area to evacuate residents trapped on the beach by the flames. It was also searching for a boat reported missing that was said to be carrying Danish tourists fleeing the fires.

A local fire chief went on state TV to appeal to people to leave the area after some tried to stay in their properties.

“People should leave, close up their homes and just leave. People cannot tolerate so much smoke for so many hours,” Achilleas Tzouvaras said. “This is an extreme situation.”</s>Wildfires sweeping through a Greek resort town killed at least 60 people, including families with children found clasped in a last embrace as they tried to flee the flames.

The inferno was by far Greece's worst since fires devastated the southern Peloponnese peninsula in August 2007, killing dozens. It broke out in Mati late Monday afternoon and was still burning in some areas on Tuesday.

Emergency crews found one group of 26 victims, some of them youngsters, lying close together near the top of a cliff overlooking a beach.

"They had tried to find an escape route, but unfortunately these people and their kids didn't make it in time. Instinctively, seeing the end nearing, they embraced," Nikos Economopoulos, head of Greece's Red Cross, told Skai TV.

Coast guard vessels and other boats rescued almost 700 people who had managed to get to the shoreline and plucked another 19 survivors and four dead bodies from the sea, the coast guard said.

A Reuters photographer saw at least four dead people on a narrow road clogged with cars heading to a beach.

"Residents and visitors in the area did not escape in time even though they were a few metres from the sea or in their homes," fire brigade spokesperson Stavroula Maliri said.

In total, at least 60 people died, said Evangelos Bournous, mayor of nearby Rafina-Pikermi.

It was unclear how many people remained unaccounted for as coast guard vessels combed beaches to find any remaining survivors, with military hospitals on full alert, a government spokesperson said.

One of the youngest victims was thought to be a six-month-old baby who died of smoke inhalation, officials said. Of the 156 people injured, 11 were in intensive care, they added.

"Today, Greece is mourning and we are declaring three days of national mourning in the memory of those who perished," he said in a televised address.

Mati, 29 kilometres east of the capital, is a popular spot for Greek holiday-makers, particularly pensioners and children at camps.

Greece's fire brigade said the intensity and spread of the wildfire at Mati had slowed on Tuesday as winds died down, but it was still not fully under control. The service urged residents to report missing relatives and friends.

White smoke rose from smouldering fires in parts of Mati early on Tuesday. Burned-out cars were scattered outside gated compounds where three- and four-storey buildings bore signs of fire damage.

"It is a difficult night for Greece," said Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, looking pale after returning from a visit to Bosnia.

Greece issued an urgent appeal for help to tackle fires that raged out of control in several places across the country, destroying homes and disrupting major transport links.

Cyprus and Spain offered assistance after Greece said it needed air and land assets from European Union partners.

"Our thoughts go to Greece and the victims of the terrible fires. France and Europe express their solidarity with both Sweden and Greece and offer help," French President Emmanuel Macron said in tweets published in French and Greek. Sweden has also suffered forest fires.

Newspaper printed banner headlines including "Killer Fire" and "Hell" and reported fears the death toll would climb.

Authorities said they would use an unmanned drone from the United States to monitor and track any suspicious activity.

Tsipras and Greek officials have expressed misgivings at the fact that several major fires broke out at the same time.

Wildfires are not uncommon in Greece, and a relatively dry winter helped create the current tinder-box conditions. It was not immediately clear what ignited the fires.

A hillside of homes was gutted by flames east of Athens. A mayor said he saw at least 100 homes and 200 vehicles burning.

Earlier on Monday, Greek authorities urged residents of a coastal region west of Athens to abandon their homes as another wildfire burned ferociously, closing one of Greece's busiest motorways, halting train links and sending plumes of smoke over the capital.</s>MATI, Greece (Reuters) - Greece’s prime minister told of the “unspeakable tragedy” the country faced after at least 74 people were killed by wildfires that swept through a resort, trapping people in cars and on the edge of cliffs as others were forced to jump off to survive.

The scale of Monday night’s devastation in Mati became apparent at first light on Tuesday.

Scores of gutted cars lined streets in the coastal town, east of Athens, melted by the intensity of the heat. Bodies lay on roadsides, and in one area, a group of 26 people were found dead - some locked in an embrace as the flames closed in.

The group, which included children, were found near the top of a cliff overlooking a beach. They had ended up there after apparently searching for an escape route.

“Instinctively, seeing the end nearing, they embraced,” the head of Greece’s Red Cross, Nikos Economopoulos, told Skai TV.

The lucky ones were able to leap off the cliffs to survive, or rush into the sea from the beach.

“We went into the sea because the flames were chasing us all the way to the water. It burned our backs and we dived into the water,” said Kostas Laganos, a middle-aged survivor.

He compared the ordeal to the destruction of the city of Pompeii, where thousands were incinerated by the volcano of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. “I said ‘my God, we must run to save ourselves and nothing else’.”

At least 74 people were killed, a fire brigade spokeswoman said, and the death toll was expected to rise. Poland said two of its citizens, a mother and her son, were among the victims.

It was not clear how many people remained unaccounted for as boats combed beaches for any remaining survivors.

Residents, their faces blackened by smoke, wandered the streets, some searching for their burned-out cars, others for their pets. The eerie silence was punctured by fire-fighting helicopters and the murmur of rescue crews. There were yellow body bags in several areas.

Many in the area had been unable to escape the fast pace of the blaze even though they were a few meters from the Aegean Sea or in their homes, the fire service said.

A Reuters photographer saw at least four dead people on a narrow road clogged with cars heading to a beach.

One of the youngest victims was believed to be a six-month-old baby who died of smoke inhalation. At least 187 people were injured, officials said, among those 23 children.

“Greece is going through an unspeakable tragedy,” Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said as he appeared on television to declare three days of national mourning.

“Greece is living one of its most difficult moments,” he said. “There are absolutely no words to describe how we feel right now.”

A burned house is seen following a wildfire at the village of Mati, near Athens, Greece July 24, 2018. REUTERS/Costas Baltas

Flags atop the ancient Acropolis hill and parliament flew at half mast.

The inferno was thought to be Greece’s deadliest, with the death toll higher than fires which ravaged the southern Peloponnese peninsula over several days in August 2007, killing dozens.

By Tuesday afternoon, the Mati fire was contained, but the risk remained of it reigniting in scrubland parched by Greece’s searing summer heat.

(GRAPHIC: Greece wildfires - tmsnrt.rs/2Ly4az6)

“KILLER FIRE”

Wildfires are not uncommon in Greece, and a relatively dry winter and hot summer helped create the current tinder-box conditions. The cause of the current blaze was not immediately clear and an Athens prosecutor ordered an investigation into it.

Mati is a popular spot for Greek holidaymakers, particularly pensioners and children at summer camps. One of the missing included a woman with multiple sclerosis, dragged out of her wheelchair by her frantic husband as the flames closed in, but lost in the ensuing chaos.

The fire service urged residents to report missing relatives and friends. Some took to Twitter and Facebook, posting photographs of young children and elderly couples they hoped to track down.

Greece issued an urgent appeal for help to tackle fires that raged out of control in several places across the country, destroying homes and disrupting major transport links.

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Newspapers printed banner headlines including “Killer Fire” and “Hell”.

Cyprus, Spain, Italy, Croatia and Portugal offered assistance after Greece said it needed air and land assets from European Union partners.

“Our thoughts go to Greece and the victims of the terrible fires,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in tweets published in French and Greek.

Pope Francis said in a telegram he was deeply saddened by the tragedy and prayed for the victims and their families.
Wildfires in east and west Attica, Greece, kill at least 76 people, leave another 172 injured, and burn hundreds of houses and vehicles, prompting a state of emergency. The Greek government requests help from European Union countries.