Strong northerly winds, known locally as the meltemi, are set to dominate Greece’s weather over the next 48 hours, with gusts forecast to exceed 100 km/h in places. The conditions are expected to significantly worsen wildfire risk across large parts of the country.

The gale-force winds are likely to disrupt ferry services in the Aegean, forecasters said. They will also bring a marked drop in temperatures, falling by 6 to 7 degrees Celsius, particularly in the country’s eastern regions.

Fire-weather conditions, already considered dangerous, are expected to deteriorate further over the next two days in Attica, Boeotia, Evia, much of the Peloponnese, the Sporades, the northern Aegean, Halkidiki, eastern Macedonia and Thrace, the Cyclades and Crete. Forecasters warned that the strong winds significantly raise the risk of any fire spreading rapidly.

Maps published by Meteo, the National Observatory of Athens’ weather service, show the maximum gusts expected around midday on Thursday 13 and Friday 14 August across eastern Central Greece, the Peloponnese and the northwestern Cyclades.

On Thursday 13 August, gusts are expected to exceed 100 km/h in the southwestern parts of Boeotia, northern Attica, Dirfys, and the mountainous and southern areas of Evia.

On Friday 14 August, winds gusting above 100 km/h are forecast for southern Evia and southwestern Andros.