Sawt Falasteen - Tourists rescued by boat as forest fire threatens Greek beaches

Water bombing planes and helicopters and almost 150 firefighters battled the flames spreading across the Halkidiki peninsula, south of the city of Thessaloniki, the fire service said.

Two injured firefighters were taken to hospital, the service added.

Within hours of erupting, the fire bore down on homes around the popular resorts of Siviri and Fourka, which are packed with summer tourists. The region is dominated by flammable pine forests.

Greece's civil protection agency sent evacuation warnings by phone to people in the two resorts.

And more than 250 tourists in bathing costumes, and many carrying children in their arms, were evacuated by sea in 15 small boats brought into service for the emergency, ERT public television reported.

A fire service spokesman said the evacuation had to be by sea as the flames were getting close to the beaches.

Dozens queued on a pontoon at Fourka waiting to flee as smoke blotted out the sky over the resorts, according to images broadcast by ERT.

There were also traffic jams of cars trying to leave Fourka and Siviri.

- Wall of flames -

ERT said a three-kilometre-long (1.8 mile) wall of flames up to 30 metres (100 feet) high was closing in on the resorts.

"We are on the beach and looking for a way to get away," Sophia, a home owner in the region who only gave her first name, told AFP by phone.

"From where we are, we can see that flames have reached the town and the houses."

Firefighters said strong winds made the battle difficult.

The Greek authorities had issued a maximum five alert for fires for much of the Greek mainland.

Halkidiki authorities had banned the public from entering the region's pine forests.

Weather forecasters have predicted winds of up to 100 kilometres (60 miles) an hour on Friday.

Greece is badly hit by wildfires every year. And experts say the risk is growing because of human-fuelled climate change that has made droughts and other weather phenomena more extreme.

The authorities said that 40 forest fires were reported across Greece in 24 hours and that nine were still not controlled by late Thursday.

Already this month, two crew from a helicopter helping to battle a forest fire near Athens died when their aircraft collided with another helicopter in mid-air.

The fire destroyed 110 square kilometres (42 square miles) of forest.

O.Farraj--SF-PST