Greece fire tornado erupts as Southern Europe heatwave fuels wildfires

A fire tornado formed over the Kanthi Megaron area in the Attica and Boeotia regions of Greece, creating a towering column of smoke, flames and ash as firefighters battled the blaze from air and ground. The phenomenon, caused by intense heat from the forest fire combined with strong winds, poses a heightened danger to crews.

At the same time, an extreme heatwave sweeping Southern Europe has sparked large wildfires in Spain, forced temporary shutdowns of three nuclear reactors at France’s Chooz and Cattenom plants to preserve river water levels, and placed Greece’s emergency services on heightened alert. Authorities in Spain’s Zamora de la Peña region responded to a fire at a waste‑processing plant, issuing evacuation warnings due to toxic smoke. No injuries have been reported from the Greek fire tornado.

The combined events underline the severe strain on firefighting resources and energy infrastructure across Greece, Spain, France and neighboring Belgium as temperatures remain unusually high.