A major wildfire northwest of Athens, the Greek capital, burned through hectares of pine forest for a third day as hundreds of firefighters, assisted by water-dropping planes and helicopters, battled the flames.

These latest wildfires broke out on Tuesday, fanned by strong winds and triggered evacuation alerts for villages southeast and northwest of the city.

The first blaze, near the Keratea region, quickly burned through shrubland. But it was contained before reaching the scenic Sounion national park and its ancient Temple of Poseidon.

On the other side of the capital, another fire is burning in the Vilia area. High winds have been hampering the firefighting effort there, too. Greece's fire department said 370 firefighters, including 143 from Poland, were deployed to the area on Thursday, along with 130 vehicles, eight helicopters and three planes. The army and local authorities also assisted.

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The wildfires' many fronts are making everyone's job even more difficult, according to the many volunteers who are helping to bring the flames under control.

"We are trying, we are waiting, we are hoping it won't get dark because the planes and helicopters will stop dumping water," said Dimitris, a local volunteer.

"The fronts stretch for 15km to 20km. We are talking about a burning front, that burns anything in its path. Last night was very difficult since the fires came close to our village."

The multiple fires have stretched Greece's response capabilities to the limit, leading the government to appeal for international help. About 24 European and Middle Eastern countries sent firefighters, helicopters, planes and vehicles.

But by Monday, most had left, as other wildfires broke out in several Mediterranean countries.

And although hundreds of firefighters and volunteers are on the scene, residents blame authorities for not taking swift measures.

"We don't have water in this area, we simply don't have water. That's the most important thing," said Nikos Vardalakos, the president of a local nature preserve.

"Since there is no water, we cannot do anything. The second thing I want to point out is that some government organizations don't let us create fire breaks in the mountains so we can battle the fire, and when we try to do so, we are faced with court orders, lawsuits and hefty fines."

Hundreds of wildfires have burned across Greece this month as the country experienced its worst heatwave in three decades. Officials warned that the fire threatening villages in the northwest is the worst of many fronts, and that's including some blazes that have continued burning since last week.

With images of burned houses in Varimpompi and hundreds of thousands of hectares of pine forest destroyed in Evia, authorities are doing everything they can to avoid the same sort of disaster.