Greece: Samos fire contained

Fire Service officials say they have contained a fire on the island of Samos that had forced an evacuation of tourists from a beach resort.

Officials say four water-dropping helicopters helped some 200 firefighters and organised volunteers battle the blaze today at Marathokampos, a western area of the island. Local authorities declared a state of emergency in the area.

Late Monday, some 400 mostly Scandinavian tourists were safely evacuated from coastal hotels and returned several hours later.

It was the third major fire to hit the eastern Aegean Sea island in two weeks.