Greek fires at Nea Anchialos prompt explosion causing F-16s to evacuate base
Shock waves were felt miles away and 133 residents of the nearby town of Nea Anchialos escaped by sea.
The coastal base is home to Greece's 111 Combat Wing, and F-16 planes flew to another base as a precaution.
F-16 missiles and bombs are stored at the depot 6km (3.7 miles) north of the planes and the runway.
As the wildfire reached the western end of the base on Thursday evening, police set up a perimeter and the area was rocked by several powerful explosions, including a dramatic blast heard at 19:18 (16:18 GMT).
No-one was hurt, but windows were shattered in Nea Anchialos and several villages in the area were evacuated as church bells rang out warning residents to leave their homes.
The shock waves were felt some distance up the coast of the Magnesia region in the city of Volos. A major wine co-operative just outside Nea Anchialos went up in flames.
Greece has endured two weeks of fire emergencies, which have seen thousands of holidaymakers and residents fleeing some of its popular destinations.
The continuing crisis prompted Citizen Protection Minister Notis Mitarakis to resign for "personal reasons". The minister had reportedly been absent from his desk in Athens and some Greek media said he had been on a boat on the island of Patmos.
During the afternoon, residents fled by road and by sea, as the coast guard and private boats ferried people to safety.
Greek daily Kathimerini reported that the ammunition depot was so tightly packed that its fire safety systems had not worked.
The system was in effect rendered useless by the sheer volume of explosives, the paper said, and the munitions that blew up may have overheated rather than coming into direct contact with the fires.
The fire has now been extinguished and air force and fire crews have sprayed coolant on the ammunition depot. The fleet of F-16s was flown to the Larissa headquarters of another combat squadron.
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