Two firefighting helicopters collide while battling Greece wildfire

Megafire fears grow with over 10,000 hectares scorched across Greece

Gale-force winds have fanned flames across multiple parts of Greece, intensifying a new front in Europe’s wildfire emergency, while major fires in France and Spain show signs of easing, with blazes either not advancing or under control.

In southwestern France, firefighters held a vast wildfire within its perimeter, with about 198,000 people now allowed home after what may have been the country's largest peacetime evacuation.

In one escalating Greek blaze, firefighters, police and ambulances slowly withdrew before a huge wall of fire and smoke engulfing forests and shrub near Porto Germeno on the Gulf of Corinth 60 km (40 miles) northwest of Athens.