Firefighters take over Athens suburban fire

Greek firefighters took the lead on Wednesday in the battle against a forest fire that has been raging for two days in mountainous suburbs north of Athens and had already forced hundreds of people to flee.

Thirty people, including three firefighters, needed medical attention for burns and breathing difficulties, the fire service said.

Several buildings suffered varying degrees of damage as a result of the fire on Tuesday.

Citizens' Protection Minister Takis Theodorikakos said his officers had since Tuesday helped evacuate nearly 700 people to safety, noting that some had refused to leave.