Two dead after wildfire guts house in northern Greece

Two people died after a wildfire gutted a house in a forested settlement in northern Greece, the fire brigade said.

The fire broke out in bushland on Tuesday afternoon and, fanned by strong winds, spread quickly and engulfed the house near the village of Liti about 25 km (16 miles) from the northern town of Thessaloniki, local media reported.

The fire brigade said they found a dead man nearby as they put out the fire and saw a second body inside the house. A woman with burns was rescued from the same area.

Authorities had told residents to evacuate the settlement and move to a nearby playing field.

Greece and other Mediterranean countries are considered wildfire hotspots by scientists due to a fast-warming climate, with blazes becoming more destructive during hot and dry summers.

-Reporting by Elefterios Papadimas and Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Andrew Heavens/Reuters