Greek authorities said a wildfire that tore through the coastal town of Keratea, about 40 kilometres south-west of Athens, was largely contained on Saturday, yet evacuations continued as gale-force winds threatened to reignite hotspots. Fire crews discovered the body of an elderly man in a burned-out structure on Friday, bringing the confirmed death toll to at least one. Some 260 firefighters backed by around 80 engines and a dozen water-bombing aircraft remained deployed around Keratea and neighbouring Palaia Fokaia amid forecast gusts of up to 80 kilometres an hour through the weekend. The blaze destroyed several homes, scorched farmland and briefly threatened coastal resorts, prompting police to go door-to-door and move residents to safety. The Keratea incident was the most severe of more than 50 agricultural and forest fires reported across Greece in the past two days, according to the Hellenic Fire Service. Scientists rank the Mediterranean nation among Europe’s wildfire hot spots, a risk that has intensified as prolonged heat and drought leave vegetation tinder-dry. Officials warned that high winds and parched conditions could hamper efforts to fully extinguish the fire and complicate any new outbreaks.