A group of 20 firefighters from the Civil Protection Department is on its way to Greece to help fight wildfires which have swept large swathes of the country.

They were deployed after a request for help made by Greece to the European Union.

Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri, who saw them off, said the assistance was made possible thanks to training and investment made in fire-fighting over the past few years. It had also been ensured that the deployment would not affect readiness for emergencies in Malta.

Director-General Peter Paul Coleiro said this was the first time that Maltese personnel had been deployed to fight wildfires abroad, but a few months ago the department deployed a team to look for survivors after massive earthquakes in Turkey. 

He observed that the Maltese firefighters were trained in the same climatic conditions as in Greece.

The firefighters are expected to stay in Greece for two weeks.  

Greece has been suffering a heatwave that has also seen the authorities close the Acropolis in Athens during the hottest hours as a precaution for visitors' health.