ATHENS, July 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - A forest fire fanned by gale-force winds in the Greek holiday island of Crete led to the evacuation of locals and tourists, officials said on Thursday.

Greece is in the midst of a heatwave that is searing large chunks of Europe.

It has become particularly vulnerable in recent years to summer fires fuelled by strong winds, drought and high temperatures linked to climate change.

Local media said around 1,500 people had to be evacuated following the blaze, which broke out on Wednesday evening.

"Evacuations took place in numerous hotels and tourists were safely transferred to a closed gymnasium in the municipality of Ierapetra," said vice-prefect Yannis Androulakis, referring to a city in the southeast.

"At the moment, there are three active fronts. Due to the strong winds, the fire has progressed quite rapidly," Androulakis said.

Around 270 firefighters, 10 helicopters and drones have been deployed to fight the fire near the city of Ierapetra, said Vassilios Vathrakoyannis, a spokesman for the firefighting service.

"There are still a number of different fronts... The winds are very strong -- up 9 on the Beaufort scale," he said.