Two crew members were killed after two firefighting helicopters collided in midair while battling a fast-moving wildfire west of Athens, as Greece continues to grapple with a devastating stretch of blazes fueled by extreme heat and strong winds.
The Bell helicopters crashed Sunday over the Psatha area while working to contain the fire. Greek fire officials said each aircraft carried a two-person crew. Emergency responders pulled all four occupants from the wreckage.
A Greek fire service liaison officer and a Danish pilot were killed in the crash. The two survivors, a Greek national and a British national, were injured and taken to a nearby hospital.
Video circulating on social media appears to capture the moment the helicopters crossed paths at low altitude before one rotor struck the other, sending one aircraft plunging to the ground in flames. The footage has spread widely online but has not been independently verified.
“The pilots…were taken unconscious to hospital, where their death was confirmed,” fire department communications director Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said in a televised address reported by Neos Kosmos.
BREAKING: Two firefighting helicopters collided Sunday while battling a wind-driven wildfire in the Porto Germeno area west of Athens. Video captured one of the aircraft crashing to the ground after the midair collision. pic.twitter.com/4kTHa7wR0V
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Authorities immediately grounded all Bell firefighting helicopters operating in the area as investigators began working to determine what caused the deadly collision.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who was briefed on the firefighting effort, warned Greeks to prepare for what he described as “extremely difficult” days ahead.
The tragic collision unfolded as firefighters battled one of the country’s most dangerous wildfire fronts. The blaze, which erupted Friday, has destroyed more than 100 homes. A separate fire near Porto Germeno reached a military firing range, triggering explosions from unexploded ammunition.
Nearly 500 firefighters have been deployed across the region, with additional crews arriving from France and Romania to help combat the growing emergency.
The deaths raised the week’s wildfire toll to five after three firefighters were killed earlier in separate blazes in Crete and the Peloponnese. Greece, along with parts of France and Spain, has endured another brutal wildfire season as scorching temperatures and dry conditions continue to fuel fast-moving fires.
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