Firefighters are battling wildfires in Greece as tourists and locals have been evacuated from blazes that are tearing through Ionian islands.

Officials ordered the evacuations of dozens of villages amid an intense drought and strong winds that have helped the spread of the fire .

Large fires have been raging in Zante, Kefalonia and Chios.

09:31 KEY EVENT

Greece requests EU firefighting aircraft

Greek authorities have requested EU firefighting aircraft in a bid to stop the blaze from spreading.

Tourists trapped by the rapid spread of flames have been evacuated from beaches on Chios.

09:29 KEY EVENT

Fires 'out of control'

The mayor of wesern Achaia said fires in the region were "out of control."

Grigoris Alexopoulos yesterday said some coastal areas were "irreparably damag

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