Greek basketball superstar and NBA champion Giannis Antetokounmpo cancelled celebrations scheduled for his old neighbourhood Sepolia out of respect for the difficult times the country is living through due to the devastating fires.
"I hope we don't have victims from the fires" said Gianni on his personal twitter account.
Initially scheduled for today, 4 August, Gianni went on twitter to announce that his arrival and celebrations at Sepolia will be put on hold, but promises to announce a different date when circumstances permit.
Plans have changed again for the fans and Gianni due to the pandemic and now because of the devastating fires.
On news of his arrival to Greece, thousands of fans were expected to greet him at the airport but due to the rising cases of Covid-19 authorities advised against the turn out of large crowds.
During his press briefing at the airport Giannis Antetokounmpo said: “We don't know how many days we will stay, but we will take it [the cup] with us to the places we grew up, to Sepolia and Zografou.”
As Greece continues to battle multiple fire fronts, over 500 firefighters attempted last night to contain a large forest blaze on the outskirts of Athens, which raced into residential areas, forcing thousands to flee.
It was the worst of 81 wildfires that broke out in Greece in the past 24 hours, amid one of the country's most intense heatwaves in decades.
Civil Protection chief Nikos Hardalias said the fire north of Athens was "very dangerous" and had been exacerbated by strong winds and tinder-dry conditions due to the heat that reached 45C in the area.
No severe injuries were reported on Tuesday, and authorities said several buildings had been damaged but no detailed breakdown was available. The cause of the blaze was unclear.
