A wildfire, which was exacerbated by heavy winds, ravaged the southern suburbs of Athens on Saturday. Residents in the area were forced to evacuate as the hurricane damages property and infrastructure. When the winds receded, the intensity of the wildfire also did, according to the Greek fire brigade.

Read more: World must brace for 30% more wildfires by 2050

283 firefighters, in 65 vehicles, in addition to individual initiatives of bystanders and locals, battled the natural phenomena overnight.

Two firefighting planes and two helicopters were also operating early Sunday, when Saturday saw the Greek Civil Protection agency issue an emergency appeal by SMS sent to people to leave the Ano Voula suburb.

There were no casualties, according to officials. 

Some wildfires still burning south of Athens tonight. #Greece. pic.twitter.com/5nQqfK1LCQ

— Savvas Karmaniolas (@savvaskarma) June 4, 2022

However, as the wind changed direction, the fire was driven towards other neighborhoods, where the authorities also ordered the evacuation of 4 neighborhoods in the vicinities of Vari, later on, Saturday evening. 

Giorgos Papanikolaou, the mayor of Glyfada where the fire first broke out, said that the wildfire started at a high voltage electric power station. 

Last summer, Greece saw some of its most pressing heatwaves in decades. Authorities blamed the condition on climate change, as fires grazed 100,000 hectares of forest and farmland - the worst wildfire damage since 2007.

Read more: After wildfires, torrential rains flood homes in Greece

The European Union, coordinated by the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, will soon deploy over 200 firefighters and technical equipment meant to deal with large wildfires. Bulgaria, Finland, France, Germany, Romania, and Norway, will be part of the task force.

The future socioeconomic threat of wildfires

Scientists believe that wildfires will represent a higher socioeconomic danger in the coming years as they continue to burn agricultural regions and harm people.

A recent study used machine learning to model where wildfires are likely to strike in coming years, as well as their impact on humanity.

The researchers, from Peking University in Beijing and Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States, believe that their work will be used to reveal regional inequalities in wildfire exposure, allowing them to better prepare for flames in particular places.

They employed 13 Earth system models to mimic the atmosphere, ocean, sea, ice, land surface and vegetation on land, ocean biogeochemistry, and the transport of carbon through the Earth system.

While the models predicted a smaller rise in carbon emissions from wildfires, socioeconomic variables predicted a larger increase.

Researchers believe the increased risks are due to "compound regional enhancement of future wildfire activity and socioeconomic development in the western and central African countries, necessitating an emergent strategic preparedness to wildfires in these countries.”

Wildfires are more likely to strike residential and agricultural areas as nations in western and central Africa develop.